On November 10, 2021, my life was turned upside down. My best friend of 34 years went home to be with the Lord. My beloved wife Sonia passed away from a heart attack, septic shock, and covid pneumonia.
I felt as if someone had taken a samurai sword and sliced me in half. It all seemed to happen so fast: only 10 days, and then she was gone. Sonia was young, only 58 years old when she passed. I felt destroyed on the inside. Without her, I was lost and devastated. The constant question I had was, “Why would God take her from me?”
God knew that I loved her very much. There were many times in our life together that we struggled financially, but she would always say to me, “I’d live in a cardboard box, as long as you were with me.” Sonia was an extremely strong woman; despite all of the difficulties that life brought, she never complained. Her faith in God was real and abiding.
As I processed her passing, I began to experience grief like I had never known before. Yet I knew that I must allow my faith in God to lead me to a path of healing. Through the pain, the Lord taught me to trust Him even when I didn’t understand His purpose. Eventually, He brought me to a verse that I still cling to. Psalm 147:3 explains that God “healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.”
I now understand and appreciate in a new way another one of God’s promises, 1 Peter 5:10: “after that ye have suffered a while, [God will] make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.” God is healing my broken heart, just like He promised. He is binding the wounds of my heart and “working all these things together for good” (Romans 8:28).
To all who read these words, I want you to know that even when life doesn’t go as you planned, God loves you, cares for you, and has a purpose for your life. He loves you so much that He sent His only begotten Son to die on the cross for sinners such as us (See John 3:16). “God commendeth his love toward us in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).
While my heart was broken by the passing of my wife, my heart is also comforted to know that, because of Christ, I will see her again in heaven. I long for the day when “God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away” (Revelation 21:4).
If you’re grieving over the loss of a loved one, or you are moved by reading Sonia’s story, the most important thing I can say to you is that “whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Romans 10:13). I want you to be saved from the consequences of your sin and avoid eternal hell. Trust Christ today! I want to introduce you to my Savior so that one day in heaven, I can introduce you to my Sonia.
“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” (Acts 16:31)
The above article was written by Angelo Sanchez. He is a former professional boxer and a member of NorthStone Baptist Church in Pensacola, FL. To offer him your feedback, comment below or email us at strengthforlife461@gmail.com.
Every Tuesday, SFL publishes relevant Bible-based content. Check back next Tuesday to read the next SFL article.
More SFL...
Here's Part 2 of Pastor Johnson's series on the mind; in this sermon, he explains Biblical principles of developing confidence.