A life well lived.

Usually I avoid the news and all of its many horrendous stories of hopelessness, but not this week. Not since Monday morning when I woke up to find my Facebook news feed flooded with news of a friend's death. Not since the news took such a personal spin for me.

Most of the world heard the news of the deadly Prescott wildfire and to them it was just more awfulness. They read the tiny bites of information the reporters give of the firefighters and grieve at such a loss, but all they will ever know of those firefighters is what then news tell them. A few short lines to summarize lives of men that were loved deeply by their family and friends.

All I will ever know about 18 of those firefighters is the portraits the news painted of them, but one of those fire fighters I will remember so much more of .

The one I went to college with.

 I the underling and he the upperclassmen. Still it was a small school and so we knew each other.

The news said he had a "dry sense of humor" and it was the truth. How many times did something happen that only Dustin would have dreamt up. Life at college is filled with jokes and randomness, yet some how Dustin added a dimension to college life that only he could produce.

Not sure I will forget the night Dustin was in exceptionally rare form and was mixing us up some brownies. I can't even remember what all was so funny. Maybe it was the "well I can't find a spoon so I'll just mix up this stuff with my hands" line, but it was just a simply hilarious "cooking show". Can't remember how the brownies tasted either, but obviously I don't remember them tasting terrible.

Dustin was a funny guy, but for every bit of humor there was just as much seriousness about His walk with God. Preaching the required sermons for homiletics in chapel and then filling the pulpit at the little country church which was not required, but he did it anyway.

I'm writing all this in the past tense which seems so horribly wrong. Just one sort week ago Dustin's older brother sat at our kitchen table and told us about the lives of all of his siblings.

Was it the last time he spoke of Dustin in the present tense?

Sudden and abruptly and without warning life changed that Sunday evening. So unexpectedly 19 lives were cut short.

"So teach us to number our days,
That we may present to You a heart of wisdom." Psalm 90:12

Dustin didn't know when he went to bed last Saturday night it would be his last night on this earth and that the next night would find him in the presence of his Savior. Dustin didn't need to know the number of days, so he could get his life right with God.

He knew who he served and he served that God every day.

The first time I met Dustin. He and his classmates were sitting around the wooden colored table in the dinning hall. They were consuming Subway sandwiches, because for obvious reasons leftovers from the week are not always desirable.

I was visiting the school to see if I wanted to go there.

The conversation was of random stuff. Gross EMT stories and stories of college craziness.

 Then those people, Dustin included, were talking about how to be a light for Christ to their coworkers. Seriousness enveloped the chatter and as I saw authentic faith. I knew I wanted to go school with people like this.

Dustin didn't just do a "good thing "like going to Bible school. He lived his faith

One horrible moment last Sunday night took Dustin's life. In the same awful moment complete joy was felt as Dustin completed his life on this earth and went to eternal glory

 

^"20 according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.

²¹ For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. " Phil 1:20-21

 Dustin is not in heaven tonight because he was a "good person". Dustin just like the rest of us struggled with a sin nature, but tonight because of the glorious grace of our Lord I can say without a doubt that Dustin is in heaven.

Dustin wanted his God to be known and by God's grace God is being glorfied in Dustin's life

Thankful to mourn with a hope. Thankful to remember a life well lived in Christ. Thankful to remember more then random memories, but to see God glorified even in sorrow.