I’m sitting in a hotel room waiting to visit some extended family. Stasi and I flew here for a memorial service. Gosh, I hate these occasions. So awkward. So painful. Death was never meant to be part of the human experience, and we reel when it strikes. You learn so quickly who has hope, and who doesn’t. Hard as it is, it is also a tender opportunity to bring Jesus, but a delicate one as all of you know who have walked others through loss.

I was already thinking about this letter before we got the call, before the hard news. This seems like a confirmation of what I wanted to share with you. So here goes…

I think most of you understand we are living in a very late hour; that these could very fairly be called the last days....