spirit

with beauty comes much pain, but i never really realized it. i understood it in the context of the joy of growing in Jesus, and the truth of the holy spirit (the pain being conviction, making changes, denying self), but this is a whole new playing field. i know brittany is in heaven, dancing with Jesus. and yet it hurts so much. yesterday afternoon i cried and cried as i thought about her in heaven. and i smiled while i cried, but i sobbed like a baby. i don't understand why it hurts so much to know she is intimate with Christ. maybe the overwhelmingness of the joy and intimacy she's experiencing is so spiritual that it manifests in our physical body in pain. crying, not being able to breathe. humanity has truly fallen. God's plan for us is the only perfect thing. i'm so thankful he has given us redemption even though at creation we invited death to stay. God is truly good. Lord, your joy is what i want. give us just a taste of what britt, jordan and jamie are experiencing. remind us we are under your wing. we may not be rescued as britt was from this world, but we are covered. and if this is an attack from the devil to discourage us, i say Jesus Christ is victorious! the blood of Christ is sufficient for our redemption and full of power! we will not be discouraged, we will not be down hearted. we will hurt, but we will trust God for his love endures forever! our God reigns!
brittany, we'll miss you, we love you - thank you for loving Jesus and radiating his love to others!