The past few days have been extremely difficult as our church family received, and has struggled to process, the news that Josh Hernandez went home to be with the Lord after an automobile accident last Saturday. Our hearts and prayers go out to the Hernandez family, to our students in Elevate who have grown to love Josh so dearly, and to many others who have been close to Josh and his family over the last 18 years.
A great deal has already been said and written about Josh -- about his character, his love for the Lord and his leadership both at Heartland Church and Byron Nelson High School. At the bottom of this blog are a few links that will help you know a little about Josh, although words can never capture the true essence of a person -- particularly someone like Josh who impacted so many others.
As I have been reading some of the local press about Josh, and more so some of the Facebook posts by his friends and family, a couple of things have jumped out at me. The first is the nearly universal mention of how much Josh loves God. Josh lived a God-driven life. And, it is clear from the Facebook postings that Josh's love for God was not reserved for his time at church. There was no ambiguity at Byron Nelson High School about Josh's faith -- a faith that plainly was reflected in the kind of person, friend, brother and son he chose to be in life.
The second thing that jumped out at me was a common thread in the social media postings about Josh -- which was a conviction that Josh is now in a better place. A confidence that Josh is in heaven.
Not long ago I wrote a blog about heaven, which was inspired in part by the passing of my Uncle Bill. Since that time my father also passed away.
As I have been reading some of the local press about Josh, and more so some of the Facebook posts by his friends and family, a couple of things have jumped out at me. The first is the nearly universal mention of how much Josh loves God. Josh lived a God-driven life. And, it is clear from the Facebook postings that Josh's love for God was not reserved for his time at church. There was no ambiguity at Byron Nelson High School about Josh's faith -- a faith that plainly was reflected in the kind of person, friend, brother and son he chose to be in life.
The second thing that jumped out at me was a common thread in the social media postings about Josh -- which was a conviction that Josh is now in a better place. A confidence that Josh is in heaven.
Not long ago I wrote a blog about heaven, which was inspired in part by the passing of my Uncle Bill. Since that time my father also passed away.
The other inspiration for that blog came during a family trip to Montana. On the drive there, Pam, the kids and I listened to a book called "Heaven is for Real." And, that really is what I want to talk about now.
"Heaven is for Real" is a pretty amazing story about a boy who, just shy of his fourth birthday, had an encounter with heaven and lived to tell about it. I know -- I have read a number of these stories about near-death experiences and encounters with God and I often approach them with the same skepticism as many of you do. This particular story is a little different though.
First, the things the little boy saw in heaven seemed to have striking biblical support. Although the boy is a pastor's son, many of the things he spoke about in simple terms were far too complex and specific for a child that age to have learned in Sunday School -- or even in a pastor's home.
"Heaven is for Real" is a pretty amazing story about a boy who, just shy of his fourth birthday, had an encounter with heaven and lived to tell about it. I know -- I have read a number of these stories about near-death experiences and encounters with God and I often approach them with the same skepticism as many of you do. This particular story is a little different though.
First, the things the little boy saw in heaven seemed to have striking biblical support. Although the boy is a pastor's son, many of the things he spoke about in simple terms were far too complex and specific for a child that age to have learned in Sunday School -- or even in a pastor's home.
Even more compelling -- without giving away all of the details -- the little boy came back from heaven with knowledge of things (particularly about his family) that he simply could not have known. For example, he was able to describe in detail where his parents were and what they were doing while he was in the operating room. Perhaps his most compelling revelation though was about the composition of his family.
One day long after his brush with heaven this boy apparently announced to his mother in a matter-of-fact way that he had two sisters. When the mother corrected him that he only had one, he insisted there were two. He said he met a little girl in heaven who looked a lot like his older sister, but with different colored hair. He said the little girl introduced herself as his sister, and told him she had died in his mother's tummy. The little girl said she did not have a name because his parents had not given her one.
The mother immediately began to cry. You see, she had miscarried years earlier and she and her husband had never told the boy. The parents apparently had picked out a name for a boy, but at the time of the miscarriage were down to two choices in the event it was a girl. So, the little girl never had a name.
One day long after his brush with heaven this boy apparently announced to his mother in a matter-of-fact way that he had two sisters. When the mother corrected him that he only had one, he insisted there were two. He said he met a little girl in heaven who looked a lot like his older sister, but with different colored hair. He said the little girl introduced herself as his sister, and told him she had died in his mother's tummy. The little girl said she did not have a name because his parents had not given her one.
The mother immediately began to cry. You see, she had miscarried years earlier and she and her husband had never told the boy. The parents apparently had picked out a name for a boy, but at the time of the miscarriage were down to two choices in the event it was a girl. So, the little girl never had a name.
Following the deaths of my uncle and my father, thinking about what heaven is really like suddenly had a lot more practical value than I had previously realized. It became clear to me that being able to speak about heaven with some specificity and being able to speak about it in clear terms can be a powerful source of comfort and encouragement for people. Pam wants to give a copy of "Heaven is for Real" to everyone who has recently lost a loved one for that reason. I highly suggest you read it ... with an open mind.
Thank you for your continued prayers for the Hernandez family, and God bless.
Oh, by the way, the little boy in the story met Jesus and described Him to his parents. For some time after they showed him numerous paintings and drawings of Jesus. But, he said none of them were quite right ... until he saw one painted by a little girl who is the subject of the link below. You might want to check it out.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MdJovn1hP0&feature=share
Memorial/Funeral Service Video
http://vimeo.com/40586996
News Media
Memorial/Funeral Service Video
http://vimeo.com/40586996
News Media
http://www.the33tv.com/news/kdaf-byron-nelson-student-leaves-and-inspiring-legacy-20120416,0,5283079.story; http://dfw.cbslocal.com/2012/04/15/community-remembers-dead-high-schooler/
Other
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w4MlNGTpQbQ; http://www.guerrerodean.com/content/obituaries/view.jsp?OID=117623;
1 comment:
I read that book, and did a report on it, very moving. Josh was a great man we will always remember
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