loss

Three weeks ago (it seems like so much longer than that) we experienced a huge loss personally and in ministry. Paul Stover, 21, one of our most faithful Young Life leaders, passed away on Thursday, September 18, 2014. The immediate days that followed were dark days for us personally for many reasons. Our leaders are like our kids - to loose one is gut wrenching and then to watch the other 57 leaders mourn and grieve, I can't even tell you what that's like. To have such a dynamic and influential life cut so short raises questions in my own heart and head. There is so much that breaks my heart and has continued to be a source of such great sadness for us. But above all, we are thankful for the confidence and hope we have in Paul's salvation and that, without a shred of a doubt, he is with Jesus in heaven. We are inspired by the way Paul lived life to the full and had no boundaries on his ministry.

I am proud of Ben Tuel, I am proud of our leaders and I am proud of the church through all of this. Not one church in particular, but the church as an entire body. There's still a lot of healing to be done.  With one major incident or death each year since we've moved here, this seems to have been a culmination and almost a breaking point of sorts.

There's so much I don't have time to share about the way the weeks have transpired. Below is an email I sent the day after Paul's funeral to so many who prayed us through the week following Paul's death and all that it entailed. If I missed you on that, I'm sorry. Please consider this your email and thanks.

​Dear Friends,

Thank you for  your calls, emails and texts. Thank you for your prayers and words of encouragement. It may not seem like not a lot, but it means the world to us. We felt your prayers in immeasurable ways. ​We have seen God's faithfulness and felt the strength of your love.​

These last days have been incredibly hard. This may be our hardest and deepest loss yet - personally and in ministry. Paul's loss impacts both so extremely. We have and continue to grieve deeply and ask lots of questions. We have let go and let others lead us and our leaders through this.

We have seen the body of Christ raise up around us. We have seen pastors gather around our leaders, churches serve an unchurched family, committees welcome leaders into their homes, parents offer grace and thanks, counselors give of their time and training to guide us, and WVU step forward to offer their services.

We are being well cared for. Our leaders are being cared for. We are seeing fruit already from such tragedy. I could make you a list of the ways God has worked among us and been so incredibly faithful.

And you're part of that. Your prayers, encouragements and love have been felt. Thank you. Please don't stop praying. There's a lot of healing to be done in the days, weeks and months to come. It's a road to walk with kids, leaders and for ourselves.

We are getting out of town for a fun weekend with the kids this weekend (we already did that and it was great. Pictures to come soon). Ben and I are hoping to to get out of town just the two of us soon. And then maybe take some extended time off in the very near future. We're going to start counseling, too. We're taking the time we need after a major incident/tragedy every year since we've moved here.

We love you all so much. So very, very much. Thank you for being part of our family and our ministry and holding us before the Lord when we need it the most.

We love you,

​Ben & Laura