BROKEN HEARTS
The collective
hearts of the family at Betta-View Hills were broken on Sunday, March 22, 2009
as word of Kelsey Goodwin’s death began to circulate to us all.
Kelsey, for those
who may be reading this and did not know here, was a seventeen year old junior
at
Duane & Suzette
received the call that no parents ever wish to or are every ready to
receive. The death of a child cannot be
fathomed except by those who have experienced it themselves. Those of us who haven’t can only imagine the
pain and heartache.
As their brothers
and sisters we have the responsibility and better yet, the privilege of doing
our best to love, support, encourage and uplift this special family.
I know we don’t
have any words that will make the pain go away but we can certainly do what we
can to lighten the load that they must carry.
So let’s all remember to…
Pray First! The
power of God is immense and so to have access to all His power is one of the
Christian’s greatest blessing – use it today and in
the days to come. Talk to God and ask
Him to be a constant source of comfort and peace for Duane, Suzette and the
girls.
Serve!
Let’s let them know we love them by our deeds. God did as much for us (Romans 5:8) and our
love is best shown by our actions. I was
very thankful and proud of those who were at Kelsey’s house the Sunday
afternoon of her passing and that night following church services. I have also been grateful for the abundance
of visits, cards, calls, flowers and food that have been supplied to this good
family by the church here at BVH and other good people. Your presence and support mean so much at
this time. I was most proud of our young
people who came and showed their love and support. But in the days and weeks to come – please
continue to serve in the loving ways you can.
Thoughtfully written cards can touchhearts for a long time after the
event. Visit days and weeks from now
will mean a lot as well. Simply do your
best to serve a fellow Christian family.
Pray Again! I
freely admit I don’t understand the “whys” in life. And I suppose it is quite natural for us to
be tempted to ask those type questions
especially when a young person like Kelsey, is taken from us far too
soon. But again I don’t have those
answers so I must trust in God. I trust
His plan – I trust His will to be done.
And I trust His will has been done in the life of Kelsey.
I’ve spent several nights awake thinking and praying and the one clear conclusion
I came to was this: God gave Duane &
Suzette a blessing in Kelsey. She was
special in many ways. She was physically
beautiful, sweet, sometimes a little stubborn (aren’t we all) but always
polite! I think they did a great job in
raising their daughter. God really gives
us one commission as parents… “make sure these children come back to me!” Duane & Suzette successfully fulfilled
that commission from God. Kelsey, by the
teaching and influence of her parents, was a Christian. And because of
Richard O’Connor
March 30, 2009