SUDDENLY

Okay, I'll get right to the point. Our guinea pig died this afternoon. Suddenly. With very little warning.

To add insult to injury, we've only had Pippin for two and a half weeks. Inherited from a neighbor. Such a very short time. In a blink of an eye, Pippin was part of our family and then she was gone. No more chattering, no more crunching, no more life. Suddenly.

Precious Pippin

My sweet daughter is gentle-spirited, compassionate, kind-hearted and very much an animal lover. She realized something was wrong with Pippin this morning right away. So in tune. Now, my daughter is away and the guinea pig has passed.  I grapple with exactly how to tell her what as transpired in her absence when she returns home.

 

It is times like these that make very little sense especially to the young and innocent. (And, to apply reason when explaining sudden death to children is next to impossible.) Frankly, it doesn't always make a lot of sense to me.  It is heartbreaking not to mention a shock when so unexpected. And, it is times like these when it is most difficult to give thanks.  

Yet I do. 

• I give thanks to Him who created us and every creature that roams upon the earth, in the sky and under the sea. To love, to enjoy, to understand Him more and more.

• I give thank to Him for His marvelous creation and how it reveals His creativity, His depth, His glory, and His plan for the future for all of us.

• I give thanks to Him for my compassionate child whose depth of heart moves me to compassion, love, and hope in Him Who is the author of life, breathing life into us from the moment of conception and Who holds our time in His loving hands.

• I give thanks to Him for the opportunity to share this part of life, experiencing death, with my two precious gifts of life so that I can show them His glory even in the sad times, the difficult times.

•  I give thanks to Him for His perfect work in our hearts and His transforming power as He molds us into being like Him even though sometimes it hurts. It is times like these that we know we have life and we are living for Him and because of Him. It is times like these that we truly treasure His gift of eternal life.

"But, as it is written,

'What no eye has seen, nor ear heard,
    nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love Him...'" 
1 Corinthians 2:9

•  I give thanks to Him for the precious gift He gives us in the hope of His salvation, in the Kingdom to come where life springs eternal in a way that only He can give. In the blink of an eye....

"In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed." 1 Corinthians 15:52

Yes, He gives and He takes away. Yet, in each moment, there is something to be thankful for. For we know, no matter how dark it may seem in the moment, His love endures forever. For that reason alone, we can give thanks in all circumstances!

 "As soon as Solomon finished his prayer, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple.  And the priests could not enter the house of the Lord, because the glory of the Lord filled the Lord's house. When all the people of Israel saw the fire come down and the glory of the Lord on the temple, they bowed down with their faces to the ground on the pavement and worshiped and gave thanks to the Lord, saying, “For He is good, for His steadfast love endures forever.” 
2 Chronicles 7:1-3

And, I must not forget to share that, just the other day, my lovely daughter mentioned that she'd like to have a pet rat or two. I did tell her that the guinea pig was enough for now; we'd consider rats once Pippin was no longer with us. Perhaps God's providence is upon us.....?! Either way, I ran out to the pet store and purchased two small rats who will be waiting for her when she returns home. To comfort, to heal her heart, and start again..... As His love would have it.