Because She Believed - A Story of Faith and Hope
The time of reflection on the character of Jesus and His perfect track record of grace and mercy prepared us to move forward in the context of our absolute faith in Him and His goodness. We had absolute confidence that Kristen is Alive with Jesus Because She Believed.
For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. For we walk by faith, not by sight. (Ref 2 Corinthians 5:1-7)
“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1)
It seemed as if a lifetime of emotions had passed over us since we left the hospital. This “day after” (May 29) seemed to go on forever. We welcomed the love and support we received, but it was difficult to process all the feelings that came with it. Julie and I tried to settle our minds and hearts, but there were too many thoughts pressing in on us.
As we sat, feeling overwhelmed, we logged in to our Facebook accounts to post an update to thank everyone for their prayers and kind words. We were both moved when we read the outpouring of stories from Kristen’s past and present friends. We loved all the posts of encouragement, but the testimonies regarding Kristen’s faith and her bright smile brought a different tone and context to our pain and loss. Many of her friends shared stories about how she had been there for them when they needed to be lifted up. Whether it was her big smile or a corny joke, they appreciated the joy she shared. As a parent, seeing your child’s story and the testimony of her life through the eyes of others is a beautiful gift.
As the day wore on, friends and family began to arrive to love on us and share the weight of our grief. It was difficult for me to keep their grief in the right context since God had been preparing me for this time over the previous two months. I had to remind myself that Kristen’s accident was completely unexpected to them. Their faith had not been reinforced with the weeks of intimate struggle with God’s Spirit as mine had. That trial had strengthened my faith and deepened my intimacy with God. I needed to share that story with them, but I had to share it with wisdom. Too much, too soon would be more than most would be able to receive.
In the end, we filled the day with tears and laughter, with sorrow and joy. We hugged, and we cried. We held, and we healed. We remembered, and we rejoiced. We knew her heart belonged to Jesus, so we did not despair. Her life was hidden in Him, and our parting with her was only temporary. God’s children are all one in Him, whether on earth or in heaven.
When everyone had gone, Grace and Jana were in Kristen’s room, settling in for the night. As we prepared for bed, Julie and I tried to reign in our thoughts and calm our minds. We knew we had a full day of planning for Kristen’s upcoming visitation and service. The thought of selecting a casket, choosing flowers, preparing for the visitation, and planning the celebration service was almost too much to process. We had to get some rest.
In the morning, we began another day after a few restless hours of sleep that brought little relief to our weary bodies. It took a few minutes to get our bearings and to remember the context of our new reality. As we sat drinking our coffee and feeling overwhelmed, we shared our thoughts with one another about the story we wanted to convey regarding Kristen’s faith and God’s grace.
Having just celebrated Kristen’s graduation the previous summer, we knew her graduation video needed to be part of her visitation and celebration service. We wanted everyone to remember the beauty of her life and the fragility of our human existence. We especially wanted her peers to know that no one is promised tomorrow.
When watching a video that celebrates her life, with all the joys and struggles of her first 18 years and all her hopes and dreams for the future, the viewer would find a strong incentive for making things right today. Kristen’s faith rested on her Rock, her Jesus… but what if it hadn’t? What if she had put it off for another day—a day that never came! Her graduation video is a beautiful story that testifies of the glory of God. We don’t want anyone to miss an opportunity to know the Jesus that she knew… because they waited one more day. How tragic would her video be if she had put off her relationship with God for some other day!
In her struggles as a teen, Kristen often shared with me regarding her sorrow for disappointing God. She wrestled with a couple of sin strongholds that, at times, affected her intimacy with Him. I would always remind her that God would never leave her nor forsake her, regardless of her mistakes… and neither would I. She would ask me, “How can you and God still love me when I continue to disappoint you?”
I would hug her and tell her, “Because real love isn’t conditional, and forgiveness isn’t earned; it is given… It is a gift!”
We have a picture of Kristen and me dancing when she was a toddler. That “Dancing with Daddy” photo reminds me of how our Father “God” sees us. We are forever and always his little child. The picture also represents the love and care I have for my daughters… through any circumstance… no matter their age… this side of heaven or the other!
The Prodigal Son parable is a great picture of God’s love for us and illustrates the love I have for my daughters.
“While he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him” (Luke 15:20).
Don’t believe any lie that says you can make God not love you or make Him turn away from you. He is always waiting for you with compassion, an embrace, and a kiss! That is our God!
“If there were a thousand steps between you and God
And you could see no way across the great divide
Just take one step toward His loving arms
And He’ll take nine hundred and ninety-nine”
Newsong – “A Thousand Steps”
As we reflected on the blessing of Kristen’s faith, Julie looked at me and said, “We have to do something with all these Facebook posts the kids are sharing. We have to set something up so everyone can share and follow her story.” We bounced the idea around a bit, and then Julie said,
“Kristen is alive because she believed in Jesus. We need to make sure everyone knows that she believed.”
“I know, sweetheart,” I agreed, “and we need to share how God answered my prayer to see His heart. I don’t know what I will say, but I must share about His love and grace at her celebration. Right now I just can’t imagine how I will be able to do it.”
What we didn’t know as we discussed how to share the unfolding story was that on the day of Kristen’s accident, even before the accident had taken place, God had called Lauren Andrews (Julie’s co-worker and social media expert) to be willing to step outside herself and serve a higher call. God had prepared Lauren’s heart to respond to Julie’s vision of sharing Kristen’s story through social media, even before Julie had received her vision. So when Julie called to ask her advice, Lauren didn’t miss a beat. She jumped in to make the vision God had given Julie a reality. She guided us through the process, and we began sharing the story of God’s grace in Kristen’s and our lives.
As our excitement over sharing her story of faith gave way to the reality of all of the pending decisions for the visitation, celebration, and burial services, we turned to Julie’s brother Jimmy. Jimmy is a former Methodist minister with years of experience helping people through these decisions. He was a rock for us to lean on as he gently kept us moving forward… one decision at a time.
We were dreading going to the funeral home to pick out the casket and finalize the other details with the funeral director. But this time turned out to be filled with sweet reflection on Kristen’s personality and feisty disposition. The process was somewhat healing as we made sure all the details reflected her style. Each choice was like a piece to a puzzle. In the end, the individual pieces came together to represent Kristen and our vision for her celebration.
With that behind us, we now had to choose where Kristen would be laid to rest. Since Julie’s parents had purchased their burial plots in one of the town of Mooresville cemeteries, we wanted to see if we could find a plot close to theirs. Upon reviewing the cemetery map with the town representative, we found there were no open plots in their section. After a bit of searching, we found three plots near a small bench in the section below theirs. We quickly selected them and made plans to go to town hall the following day to finalize the paperwork.
As we drove home from our meeting at the cemetery, God’s Spirit reinforced the message He wanted us to share at Kristen’s visitation and service. Julie and I were talking and hadn’t noticed the radio was on until “My Story” by Big Daddy Weave started to play. We knew this song had to be a part of her celebration service because to tell her story was to tell of God.
God had brought this song to our attention a few weeks earlier as we returned from a Samoa mission meeting in Columbia, South Carolina. Immediately, we knew what God wanted us to do. We had to tell her story. We had to tell the story of God’s grace in her life—of God’s grace in all our lives.
Julie and Lauren began working on Kristen’s visitation and celebration service materials. Julie shared her vision with Lauren about the social media theme. That is how the “Kristen Is Alive—Because She Believed” Facebook page and the corresponding “#KHuffDoYouBelieve” hashtag were born. Days after Kristen’s burial service, Kristen’s best friend Brooke would remember a tweet she had received from Kristen on that Easter Sunday when I prayed to see God’s heart.
Kristen’s tweet shared two verses from the Bible:
“Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?’” (John 11:25-26).
God’s intimacy was again demonstrated by His gentle touch on Julie’s heart to lead her to the Facebook page name and hashtag that represented the promise Kristen had claimed two months before her accident.
Only by God’s grace can we embrace the eternal over the temporal! That is what we mean when we say, “We walk by faith and not by sight.”
As we moved through the many decisions and emotions of preparing to celebrate Kristen’s life, we really began to understand what a difference a day makes… when God is on the move!
3.27.16 – (Easter Sunday) – On this day, Kristen was reminded of God’s promise of everlasting life and tweeted the verses (John 11:25-26) to her best friend, Brooke Michelle Pierantoni…
3.27.16 – On this day, God answered my prayer to see His heart. As the Huffman family watched The Passion musical, I was led to see the sacrifice of Jesus from God’s perspective as a father. God asked me, “Would it make a difference to you, the church, the world if it were your child that had to die because of sin?”
5.27.16 – The day of Kristen’s accident – On this day, before the accident, God called Lauren (Julie’s co-worker) to be prepared to step outside herself and serve a higher call…
5.28.16 – On this day, Lauren knew what God wanted her to do as soon as she heard that Kristen had been killed in an accident. She was prepared when God told Julie to call her. Through this conversation, Lauren began working on Kristen’s visitation and celebration service materials, the Facebook page “Kristen Is Alive – Because She Believed,” etc.
5.28.16 – On this day (days before Brooke shared the John 11:25-26 tweet with us), God led Julie to share Kristen’s story (i.e. God’s story) by means of a Facebook page centered on the same promises that God had given Kristen…
Although these conversations with God were private, intimate moments, God orchestrated all of these together to help comfort Kristen’s family and friends. He spoke to Kristen, Lauren and me before Kristen’s accident and prepared the way as she transitioned from the bonds of this world to the fullness of her life with Jesus. God spoke with Julie following the accident and asked her to share with the world Kristen’s story of faith and hope. In Christ, nothing is wasted!
Every day is special as Jesus seeks to be intimate with us. We must cherish each moment because we are not guaranteed tomorrow!
“We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, to those who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28 WEB).
Faith isn’t about our never having problems or trials. It is about trusting God to lead us through them. It is about trusting Him to be our anchor as the storms of life come upon us. Our hope is not built upon shifting sands.
“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:15-16).
The Road of Life
by Kristen Huffman (7th grade)
Dedicated to God: “Without Him I am nothing. He died for me, so I live for Him.”
I stumble, I fall,
But it doesn’t break me.
They ask me how,
So I tell them a wise man once told me.You have to seek first the Kingdom,
Draw near to Christ.
You have to abide in the Lord Jesus,
Just so you can get through life.Life is not an easy road,
It’s filled with curves, hills, and pain.
But when you are laying in the dirt,
Remember the words I say.You have to seek first the Kingdom,
Draw near to Christ.
You have to abide in the Lord Jesus,
Just so you can get through life.Don’t ever give up, Just keep on pushing.
Heaven is at the end of your life!
Jesus said to her,
“Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” (John 11:40).
