The sleepy silence of the morning was broken by the ring of the telephone. It was my husband calling from the hospital. “Come to the hospital, quick! Dale had a motorcycle accident and it’s serious.”
I had been concerned about Dale’s interest in fast vehicles even when he was a teenager, especially when he bought his motorbike. Now he owned a motorcycle, but he was older, married with two children. I knew motorcycles were hazardous, but what could have happened this early in the morning? My husband and our two sons Roy and Dale had planned to meet at their favorite restaurant for breakfast. Instead, we were all going to meet at the emergency room.
I picked up Dale’s wife and we hurried to the hospital. My husband and Roy quickly explained that the doctor had said Dale’s injuries were very serious. He was soon transferred by ambulance to another hospital.
The hours dragged by as we waited for surgery to end, but eventual recovery was not to be. Two days later Dale was transferred into the courts of heaven to be with His Saviour, where there is no more pain or sorrow.
Our loss was hard to bear, but there was thankfulness in knowing that Dale belonged to the Lord Jesus. We could remember that, as a little boy of seven, Dale had said he wanted to become God’s child. He had prayed a simple, sweet prayer, “Dear Lord Jesus, forgive me my sins and come into my heart and life. I accept You as my Saviour now. Thank-you for dying on the cross for me.” Then during a conversation between us when he was in high school, he reassured me, “Mom, don’t ever worry about me. I made sure about where I am going when I die. . . . I made certain that everything was right between me and the Lord. I have made my peace with God.”
Now we had one of our sons in heaven. Had the motorcycle accident taken Roy’s life instead of Dale’s, we wouldn’t have been sure that he was safely with his Saviour. Roy had no peace and he did not read the Bible for himself. To him death only happened to the elderly. Even with time passing, he had difficulty dealing with his brother’s death and he seemed restless.
To earn extra money one summer, he took a job as a forest fire fighter in British Columbia. He was one of the first to go into an area of a fire. He was sometimes dropped by rope from a helicopter if the area was remote.
We had planned to go spend a weekend with Roy, but he called to tell us he was working the weekend shift. We were disappointed but made plans to go elsewhere since it was the fourth anniversary of Dale’s death. Shortly after our return, an officer of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police came to give us news that stunned us beyond words - Roy had been killed in a helicopter crash.
Intense pain ripped through our hearts, and we turned to God in our grief. This loss was greater since we couldn’t be sure that Roy had joined Dale and his Saviour in heaven.
Then Rodney came. He was a special friend of Roy’s. He told us that he had had supper with Roy the previous Friday. That night Roy had told him that he had made things right with the Lord. “There is not one sin in my life that has not been forgiven,” Roy had said. Before he left at about midnight, the two of them had prayed together.
What beautiful words of comfort these were to us. We now knew that both our sons were in heaven with their Saviour.
We still feel our losses keenly, but we know that we will see our two sons in those wonderful courts of heaven one day soon. We hope that telling you about our sons’ unexpected deaths will impress upon you that death can come at any age, and it often comes without warning. If you had been in Dale’s or Roy’s place, would you be in heaven right now? If your answer is “I hope so,” why not be sure? You too can have forgiveness and the assurance that heaven will be your final home. “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life.” 1 John 5:13.
A simple prayer of faith, acknowledging your need of forgiveness and accepting Christ’s work on the cross for your sins is all that God requires. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9.
Why not take that step in faith right now and have peace with God. “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:1.
ML-01/08/1995