If you are a regular reader of our articles, you may remember me telling about my trips to Colombia to visit my grandparents, who, along with my mother, raised me. I have always considered myself extremely blessed that God chose them as my grandparents. Of course they are not perfect, but they have extraordinary qualities. Grandpa taught me what it means to be a hard worker and a provider for the family. As a seven-year-old orphan, he worked hard to provide for his little sister because he wanted something better for both of them. As an adult, he developed successful businesses that provided for his family. God’s hand was clearly in his life.

My grandmother lost her mother when she was 16 years old. In the Colombian civil war, she lost many more family members as well. These experiences made her so strong. Her greatest influence on me was her love for God. I have many memories of her sitting by her bedside late at night or in the living room praying for what seemed to me like hours.

Both of my grandparents also love to serve. Still today, on Sabbaths, my grandfather loves to sit outside and hand out money to children and the elderly. During Christmastime, they buy and wrap lots of gifts and distribute them to homeless children. I love my grandparents and how they shaped me. I am blessed that my husband and children have been influenced by them, too. I love my grandparents so much that, before I became a Seventh-day Adventist Christian and discovered what the Bible says about death, I would think to myself, “If my grandparents die, I would not be able to survive it.”

As years passed and I became an Adventist Christian, I was able to share these truths with my grandmother, and she embraced them and was baptized 15 years ago. What a great day that was!

And so it was with great sadness that I learned my grandmother went to sleep in Jesus on November 19. Her passing was sudden and caught us by surprise. I knew she was fragile and probably didn’t have many years left, but we are never really ready for death. She was fine one day, and the next day she got sick and died in less than 24 hours. This was the first loss of a loved one that I have experienced as an adult. But thanks to our Lord and Savior, I have been able to find peace in this difficult moment. I cannot imagine going through this without God.

As we prepare to go to Ireland, a country very much like mine where people relate to religion as only a tradition, I can’t help but think of all the people who need to hear the message of hope and salvation. We want God’s children in Ireland to know Him personally so that He can bring them hope, forgiveness and restoration in this life and a future in eternity. Please join us through prayer or become part of our support team with a monthly donation of any size to help sustain this project. May the Lord bless you.

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