Stephen Williams

For those of you who grew up in Springville, I am sure by now you have heard the terrible news about Stephen Williams. For those of you who did not, one of my friends from high school (Stephen Williams) was murdered on Wednesday night, October 13, 2010.

As I am processing the information that is coming from the end of the phone, I just cry. I honestly do not know what else to do. It just blows my mind that some people are so lost in their own greedy and fleshly needs that they think it is ok to take the life of someone's friend, someone's child,someone's brother, someone's potential husband and father.

We may never understand why this happened but one thing I do know is that Stephen is in heaven. Stephen chose life over death. He chose Jesus Christ, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, the Creator of heaven and earth, the Righteous One, the Sovereign One, the Great I AM, The Son of God. And now he dances and sings in heaven. He is probably singing Kenny Chesney's She Thinks My Tractors Sexy on a karaoke machine with Jesus as we speak:)

Stephen brought so much life into a world with so much death. He loved when people didn't love him and that is what Christ's expects from his believers. Take this tragedy and turn it into Glory. As hard as it is to Glorify the Lord in times like these know that sufferings produce character. More than that , we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that sufferings produce endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. Romans 5:3-5

This is the last picture Stephen posted on facebook. How awesome his mother must feel to know she raised a son that not only loved and adored her, but had salvation in Jesus Christ. Without Jesus we are nothing. Do not let Christ's death be in vein. I love you Stephen Williams. 

The righteous man perishes, and no one lays it to heart; devout men are taken away, while no one understands. For the righteous man is taken away from calamity; he enters into peace... Isaiah 57:1-2