Loss

The world lost two beautiful souls to Heaven this week. Brittany and Shep Pugh were killed in a car accident on Monday near Troy, Alabama. Tragically, the driver of the car that struck them died as well. Brittany was a friend of mine from high school and college and Shep was her 15 month old son. Her family, including her husband, Clint, are left to pick up the pieces. I've cried a river this week and feel emotionally spent, knowing that my sorrow in no way compares to her parents, sister and husband.

I'm trying hard to remember that God is sovereign and ever-present, but its impossible not to question why this happened. Even if God revealed his all-knowing power to us, we're incapable of understanding. Please cover the Shepard and Pugh Families in prayer.

This song was laid on my heart last week in church and I heard it in my head so many times this week. It doesn't deal as much with loss and sorrow as it does with human nature. The version by Sufjan Stevens is especially moving and I've posted it here on my blog. Here are the lyrics:

Come, thou Fount of every blessing,
tune my heart to sing thy grace;
streams of mercy, never ceasing,
call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount! I'm fixed upon it,
mount of thy redeeming love.

Here I raise mine Ebenezer;
hither by thy help I'm come;
and I hope, by thy good pleasure,
safely to arrive at home.
Jesus sought me when a stranger,
wandering from the fold of God;
he, to rescue me from danger,
interposed his precious blood.

O to grace how great a debtor
daily I'm constrained to be!
Let thy goodness, like a fetter,
bind my wandering heart to thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
prone to leave the God I love;
here's my heart, O take and seal it,
seal it for thy courts above.

Hug your babies, kiss your soul mates and be well.