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Sophia and I made it to Crossett on Thursday after an uneventful 3 hour road trip.

Truthfully, I’ve never experienced the death of a close family member. The closest would be my granny, who died at age 95 while we were in Peru.

But, no one that I’ve ever been around on a fairly regular basis and that I was really close to has died. Neither have I been involved in a situation like that. I never really knew Nemi very well, but this family in Crossett is as close as any and for the first time I am seeing on a personal level what such a devastating loss can do to a family.

The Jordan family is absolutely heartbroken. And being here with them has caused my heart to ache for them. They are broken and confused and angry and all the things that go along with a losing someone like this.

But, the amazing thing is that they are turning to Jesus with their pain and sadness and anger. God truly is bringing good from this horrible event. It is making me love him more just to get to witness their response. Imagine that . . . through Nemi’s death I am being drawn closer to Jesus.

And that is really just the tip of the iceberg. People are asking for forgiveness from one another, relationships are being healed, hearts are turning back to Jesus, and hearts are yielding to Jesus for the very first time.

“Jesus, please bring good out of this situation. May you be glorified in this situation” is a prayer that you might pray when something like this happens (I did.) but not really have the slightest idea of how it could come to pass . . . . “the situation is too horrible, no good can come of this” is what the practical side says.

But, 5 days after Nemi died that is exactly what is happening.

There’s a great article in Home Life magazine this week about living space, the lack of living space that is. This family of four starting out in a small trailer home 10 years ago. It wasn’t the plan to live there this long . . . but they still do. Here is an excerpt of what the mom had to say about it.

Sure, I dream of having a larger home where I can entertain and host family holiday gatherings . . . My family and friends continue to drop helpful hints about floor plans or affordable building options. We smile, thank them, and stay with the plan God has for us. When the time comes, we’ll have a new house. In the meantime, we’ll continue to tithe and give to build his kingdom. We will not sacrifice that part of our worship for any house, large or small.

I do not want to someday hear my Lord say, “Sherri, why were you so worried about your house on earth? Didn’t you know I was preparing a mansion for you?” . . .

Jesus talked about an eternal perspective. He talked about living life with a proper view of how short it really is . . . and how long eternity will be. It’s not about what we want. It’s not about comfort or all this stuff we spend so much time and energy on.

It’s a little late . . . later than I had planned to be awake. In just a few hours I’ll be snapping that little ray of sunshine into a car seat and driving to Crossett to join our family in mourning. Christ is our hedge and foundation. He is our very breath. He is our hope, our joy, and our comfort.

Sophia’s got a new friend! His name is Dekari and he is the son of one of our volunteers. Sophia absolutely loves him! She chases him all over the house.

Here are couple more pictures of Nadalie. She’s just a few minutes old in these two photos.

Nadalie and her mom will be with us here at the Promise house for two more days. They will be placed in a foster home closer to family on Thursday.

Loving God, I choose this day to be a servant. I yield my right to command and demand. I give up my need to manage and control. I relinquish all schemes of manipulation and exploitation

For Jesus’ sake,

Amen

Richard Foster, Prayers from the Heart. p. 26.

Amanda left with her mom and rest of her family late last night for Crossett. I spoke with her this morning and she said that everyone was doing ok.

Sophia and I will be joining them in the next couple of days for the funeral. Thank you for your prayers.

Nemi died 15 minutes ago at UAMS. Thank you for your prayers. Please take a moment and ask Jesus to comfort Nemi’s two daughters, her husband, and her parents.

It’s not something that we can really make sense of . . . . because it doesn’t make sense. But Jesus is still Lord. And in our confusion turn to him, our Lord.

There is a picture of Nadalie up on the kiddos page.

Most of you won’t have a clue who this is, but we would appreciate your prayers anyway. Nemi is one of Amanda’s cousins. She is currently in UAMS. She is in very critical condition and, frankly, doesn’t seem like she is going to live much longer.

Please ask Jesus to heal her. Also, pray that her family (especially her husband and two teenage daughters) will turn to Jesus in their confusion, anger, and sadness.

Thanks.