In America, in a hospital bed at OU Medical Center, my 40-year-old friend is dying.  I got a text from her sweet Momma in the wee hours of the night.  My friend has fought a battle with cancer and now kidneys and lungs are shutting down.  God can totally reverse this situation.  We all have the faith to believe He is able.  In a few short hours, they will disable all life support devices.

In a small Austrian village, our friend who feels more like a son is getting ready to get married.  In a few hours, we will watch him sign the certificate and say his vows to a young woman he's waited and prayed for.  God has been right in the middle of their relationship from the start.  We couldn't be more proud, more excited, more in love with both of them.

"You have stayed at this mountain long enough.  Resume your journey.  See, the Lord your God has set the land before you.  Go up and take possession of it.  Do not be afraid or discouraged."  (Deuteronomy 1:6, 7, 21)

Both of my friends have stayed on mountains.  One, a mountain of great pain.  She's endured unthinkable hardship that doesn't include her cancer.  She's walked through devastating things that would make most people crumble.  Yet, this little woman has walked through and emerged a powerhouse of big faith.  Her eyes have never landed and settled for the facts of her circumstances.  Instead, her eyes have landed on the truth of what God can do and what His Word says about her and her future.

The other has stayed on a mountain of waiting.  He's waited a very long time to establish a life with someone who would share his ideas and life vision.  He's waited for someone to build a new life and a new family that would bear the characteristics of a childhood he never experienced.  He's wondered if this would ever happen for him.  He endured some relationships that didn't last and suffered the heartbreak of lost love.  Yet, he's remained faithful to the promise he's believed God has given him for a family.

Now, my dear friends, are resuming their journies.  One, unless God whispers life back into her body, in heaven.  One as a husband.

Now, my dear friends are getting the privilege of taking possession of a new place that God has prepared for them.  One, a place we know about, read about, and dream about but is surrounded by mystery.  The other, a place of becoming one with another human and sharing and building a life together.

Both have the same marching orders:  do not be afraid or discouraged.  Neither one of them has walked the new journey ahead of them.  They do not have any idea what's next.  All they know is that God is waiting.  God is with them now.  He is waiting for them in the next journey.  He will be with them always.

Today I live with the awareness of funerals and weddings.  God is in control of both.