Rest In Peace

The following scripture was shared with me by a friend of mine I sit on the train with occassionally. I saw her on Tuesday and she told me that her Goddaughter Melissa was one of the young people who died in a tragic car crash a couple weeks ago here in NY. She was only 19. She shared this scripture with me that helped her and for some reason it really hit home. I was able to relate to it regarding my dear Mary. I did some research on the verse (google - of course) and have shared some of the information below. It brought me a moment of peace and hope it can do the same for you.

Isaiah 57:1,2

"The righteous perish, and no one ponders it in his heart; devout men are taken away, and no one understands that the righteous are taken away to be spared from evil. Those who walk uprightly enter into peace; they find rest as they lie in death. "

Why did so-and-so die? Why did God take them away? This is a question which the grieving often ask concerning the death of loved ones. While this passage doesn't answer that question comprehensively it does give us some insight concerning the death of righteous people

For today, this passage means that while injustice is everywhere, and people often turn away from God, there are still a few righteous mixed in there. They suffer injustice undeservingly, but in death, they find relief from the injustice of this world. Thomas Culp (teacher at HarBer) experienced an untimely death and will be missed by many, but this passage is one of hope. Rather than death being a punishment, he is experiencing relief and escape from injustice and evil. And while he will be missed and we should definitely allow ourselves to grieve his loss, we should also be glad to know that he no longer has to deal with the fallenness of our world.