PLEASE PRAY FOR THE WILSON FAMILY

there's no easy way to say this, but last week, jordan wilson (a friend of mine from baylor) took his own life. jordan was three years younger than me, so i hadn't kept up with him in awhile, but i know he must have been going through a really rough time for this to happen. i took a journalism class with jordan my senior year and i remember him being so eager to get out there and make a mark on this world. right now i'm confused and bewildered as to how a young man with so much talent and promise could go to a place this hopeless and dark.

as much as i'm feeling this way, i cannot even comprehend what his family and friends must be going through. jordan's dad is the pastor at fellowship bible church in conway, arkansas and i know that they're really struggling to grapple with all of this. i received the following email from ken (jordan's dad) and i thought i would share it with you:

Dear Friends, Family & Church,

Over the past 9 and a half years it has been my responsibility to be
there for the Body at Fellowship Conway and encourage and pray for you in difficult times. During those times I have asked you all to be open and honest about the realities of life. It is only when we have the integrity to not pretend that God and His people are able to show the grace that He has and we should be known for. Now is the time for my family to practice what "I Preach." Tuesday morning Dawn and I were informed that our 20 year old son, Jordan, took his life in his room in Waco some time Tuesday morning. We have known that Jordan was having a hard time this year at Baylor. Dawn was leaving on Wednesday to go to help Jordan move into a new apartment and come home for a few weeks before starting summer school. I do not know anything I can say to tell you how much we are hurting and how confused we are, but our faith is real. Please pray for us.

In the hands of the Almighty.

Ken

i shared this email because i thought it was such a testament to the faith and trust that this family has in God; that even in the midst of such a devastating trial, they still claim God as sovereign and in control. i think we can all learn something from this kind of sheer, difficult, tenacious spirituality. at least i can.

i ask that you please think of the wilson family this week, please pray that they may find peace and understanding. i also ask that you pray for jordan's friends who miss him and are trying to make sense of everything.

i know a lot of people are going to miss having jordan wilson in their lives. i, for one, will miss his contagious laughter, endless sense of wonder, and undeniable passion for the things that he loved.

something i'm holding on to: "for i am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." -romans 8:38-39