The loss of a loved one often leads to a crisis with our faith: we can either choose to continue walking with God, or we can turn bitter and callous toward Him

John 14:6New American Standard Bible (NASB)

6 Jesus *said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.

It seems that when we are in crisis, whether it is the loss of a child, or another loss we come to the proverbial fork in the road: either we choose to pursue the righteousness of God and trust Him that even in this crisis He knows what He is doing with us, or we can drown in our misery and our sorrow and reject Him and take a different road. 

 For me, choosing to follow Christ became an every day occurrence.  Surely, sadness and anger were my friends as I struggled to reconcile just what happened to me. Choosing for me meant I continue trusting God by going to the weekly worship services each  Sabbath, continue to be involved in ministry that best uses my Spiritual gifts, and choosing to follow Christ by being open to the pearls of wisdom from Christian friends, whether they were pastors, group of christian men I did bible study with, listening to Christian radio, or simply grabbing my bible and reading out of His word.

Choosing is a choice all of us who are in crisis have to make.

When I had those moments when I thought God had abandoned me, I remembered the  blessings of old. I remember how God answered my prayer and bought my wife and I together. I remember that prayer very well, "dear Lord, please give me eyes for this woman".  I remembered the weeks and months following my personal commitment to Christ how God helped me to finally accept my disability, lead me to good college teachers who guided me to my present career, and to a great college ministry called Campus Crusade for Christ which lead to great Christian retreats, summer ministry projects, and eventually to a great church in New  Hope, Minnesota where I would become a member through all of the days of my life's journey.

I choose to follow Christ because Christ is alive and he speaks to me.  He is alive because thousand's witness his return from the dead before he ascended to heaven. He is alive because of the evidence of the Holy Spirit he gave to all believers. 

A crisis can be the defining moment in your life as you trust God to lead you the rest of the way home.

While I wished I could bring my loved home back I also know that my life isn't done here. The life I lead with Christ will continue to be an exciting one with many more blessings yet to come.

If you are reading this blog and you are not sure about this faith, you can be assured through a simple decision to accept Christ.

All it takes is to accept Jesus into your heart  for this assurance of salvation.

It is a choice I was glad I made in 1974,