Traveling Through Life
Life is not always what it seems. Many times the thing we rest so steadily on are shaken at the very foundation. Things we thought would last forever, sadly, end prematurely. But life is a journey. It is a road that we walk with God at our side. I am reminded of that poem “Footprints”. I actually despise that poem and almost anything like it that displays some corny message. But I guess tonight I realize that that poem holds so much truth. Those times when we look back at the sand and there is only one set of footprints it is not because God left us but because it was at that those times that He carried us. Those times are the hard ones. Those are the ones when promises are broken, hearts are left shattered and dreams are wrecked. But life is a journey. I am reflecting on all this because on February 26th at 7:25pm one of my friends’ journey ended.
Renee Dueck (seen at left in image) was born on March 18, 1984. She grew up in Canada and ultimately landed in the bought-used retirement bus that shuttled us around the United States in 2005 as a ragtag group of missionaries known as The Wave USA. In mid-2005 she was diagnosed with leukemia. She was a very special young woman and one that Brittany grew especially close too. She was interested in film and filmmaking and created some great clips along with Brittany for our Wave journeys. We last spoke with Renee in 2006. I have kept up with her blog though and newsletters and even exchanged emails with her on many occasions. She was a fighter, an optimist, and a helluva Canadian defending it against every crass remark I could come up with.
Tonight as I go to sleep in Scotland, thousands of miles away from Savannah and my former life, I pray to God that He was holding a special place for Renee. I also pray that right now as I look back and I swear I only see one set of prints it is because He carried me. There is a rainbow after the storm, emotional stitches to mend the broken heart and new promises to fulfill the loss of the old ones. I know there is much beach left to walk and I know that this life is, indeed, a journey worth taking.
