Once again, life is "too short," but God is sovereign

I was going to get on here and whine and plead with you all to pray for me because I am falling off the diet wagon; I have lost my "edge," and I don't care any more (however, after seeing the back end picture on my daughter Anna's blog, and I thought I was starting to look good??? To lose 20 pounds and still be BIG is depressing...but I did it to myself!) Anyway, these whining and murmuring complaints far pale in the light of the news we received late yesterday.
Our dearest friend Emmett Wilson, a mere 66 years old, died Monday. I am literally in a state of shock. He had heart surgery on February 10. We knew it would be a long (6 months) recovery and we were all prepared to support him and Barbara, his lovely, gracious wife with cards and visits and calls and gifts; now he is gone from this world. And yes, he is not suffering, but he is "rejoicing forevermore," but here, humanly, we suffer horribly. You had to know this precious couple to understand. What a unique and role model marriage. They were best friends, comrades, lovers, ministers to others, wonderful parents and grandparents. They are literally family to Tim and me and the kids. The kids have always called them Uncle and Aunt. They were the first people to babysit our first daughter, Faith, at 6 months. They put together a photo album of the evening and gave it to us. They are that kind of people, always going the extra mile to minister and create joy for others. When we rejoiced, we knew they really rejoiced and felt our joy, too. When we suffered, they were there and we knew they felt it, too. No fluff here, no fakeness. I could never ever adequately express how much they mean and have meant to us through the years of our 22 year-old-marriage.
Tim worked with Barbara and Emmett at Delaware Tech. They took us on our first real vacation to Emmett's mom's (Miss Beaulah) in Clay, WV. What a wonderful time we had in that tiny town with the best of friends and family. It was the year of the summer olympics when Mary Lou Retton won the gold in gymnastics. Tim and I (mostly Tim--we have what we have because God gave him the gift of money management) (my family says I would give everything away) were extremely tight and had never been away aside from honeymoon and the Wilsons taught us to appreciate travel and relaxation and being with people you love, doing simple things like fording a creek ("Go on, Junior," --Miss Beaulah, 76 years young) in a compact car, ginsenging, and eating squirrel shot by Emmett's mom, and roller skating in the town's roller rink opened especially and only for us that night! We also learned to appreciate the travel itself, stopping around 2 in the afternoon to spend a night at a hotel, and really relax and enjoy, instead of driving all day or night for expediency and being exhausted and not ENJOYING THE JOURNEY! How many of us forget to enjoy the journey in the rush to get to the NEXT thing?
In addition to Clay, we went several times to one of our favorite places, Lancaster, PA, with them. One time we just rode the back roads there with them, and each time we came to a turn one of the four would say "right" or "left" and off we would go; we had so much fun just being with them. They truly loved and appreciated us, invested time in us, made us feel special. The amazing thing is they made everyone feel that way--family and friends. The true gift of encouragement. The true gift of service to others. They always made us feel welcome if we just stopped by, like WE were blessing THEM! They have always been there for us. We also went to many southern Gospel concerts with them, one of Emmett's true loves. They were there for the children's births, baptisms, homeschooling, graduations, jobs (visiting at Chick-fil-A with their grandchildren--who they took on separate "dates" )... what beautiful examples of true love for all.... I wish I could express it--I want everyone to know how special this couple are and how much the world will be hurt by not having Emmett here. I have rarely met anyone who cares about others the way Barbara and Emmett always have. And their love for one another was a beauty and inspiration to behold; good natured kidding, and loving friendship and admiration!
I am having trouble believing he is gone; it is the feeling I had when my father died suddenly: He will always be here. He can't be gone. In fact, I said to Tim when he told me, "NO. UH-UH. That can't be true." Please, please pray for our dear friend and sister Barbara. I cannot begin to imagine her pain. Her soulmate is gone. Oh my, I just cannot fathom it. If I hurt this much....oh, Jesus, be her comfort. You are the God and Father of all compassion and comfort.
Truly, this was a man of men. There are not enough good and wonderful things to say about Emmett Wilson. What a privilege to have known him. Tim has often said here is a man he (Tim) would do ANYTHING, any time, for, a true person of his word, a man who lived what he believed, a man who served his God and His people, not content to just sit and do nothing, but always looking for ways to serve others. I know my husband is hurting; this was his first true male friend, brother. May God be very real to us and especially to Emmett's precious and extended family!
Thank you for letting me get some of this out. It is so good to be able to reflect and share. May God be gracious to you today and lift you up and draw you close.