Difficulty in this life...

Last Friday a little boy that we know was hit by a chicken bus (for those who have not been to Guatemala, it is basically the public form of transportation. It is an old school bus painted brightly, and sometimes people take animals on... that's why people call it the chicken bus, you sometimes see people with live chickens). Well, this little boy, Joshua, was 3. He had been with a 17 year old baby sitter, while they were in a tienda (small shop) she was buying something and he ran out into the street and got hit. It was not her fault, it was not the drivers fault, it was a 3 year old boy simply being a 3 year old boy. On Tuesday, he passed away.

Now, I was not really close to Joshua, but I knew him enough to know... he loved to be chased around and tickled (sometimes, but sometimes he would cry if the crazy white girl would run up to him), he loved to follow around his older brother, he loved to color, and boy could he throw a tantrum.  One day, we were playing and coloring out on the street with some of the kids, and Joshua did not only want a coloring page, he wanted the whole coloring book. When Brittney told him he could not keep the coloring book, boy did he loose it. It was hysterical. The chunky little kid rolling around, yelling and screaming like someone had done the worst thing possible.... simply because he was not aloud to have a coloring book. Like I said, I was not super close to him, but I still miss him.

Isaiah 23:9 "The Lord Almighty planned it..."

It is so hard, in situations like this, to think that God planned to end little Joshua's life after only 3 short years. It is so easy to say that it was simply an accident, a mistake God made, but that is just not true. God truly did plan it, even before Joshua was a remote possibility, even before Joshua's parents met, God knew this day was coming. In this moment we may not see why, but at the end of life I am fully convinced that God will say, "See, I knew what I was doing. As a result of Joshua's death this, this and this happened. I told you, I have this under control." In this life there are so many things that will happen that seem wrong or terrible, but they were planned before time began.

I am not saying that we should not be sad, it is a hard situation and grieving is necessary. On Thursday we attended Joshua's funeral. There were so many people there, all to grieve and comfort the grieving. We were able to hug the parents and tell them we were praying. I do ask that you will all pray for the family (Mother, Father and brother, as well as extended family) and friends of Joshua, this is a very hard time.

He has a plan, we might not always see it.... and at times we might flat-out hate it, but there is a reason for it. We just need to trust that creator of the universe knows what he is doing.