11-14-2017
His name was Quvonta, Qu for short. I didn’t know him all
that well yet, but he was still a teammate. I remember having him in my
orientation group at school, showing him around campus, helping schedule his
classes, talking with him and his brother about basketball. We practiced
together for a few weeks before he went back home to Cleveland for a little while.
We chatted in a group message with the rest of the team. He always lifted us up
and encouraged us. He wanted to make us better. He was determined to make us
better. He was supposed to be back to practice on Monday, but Monday never came
for him…
We got the news Sunday morning from Coach in a text that
read, “I postponed the game today. There was an incident where Q was shot and
killed last night. I don’t know anymore details.” My heart sank. My stomach
dropped. How do you take this kind of news? A friend, a teammate, a twin
brother, a best friend, a son, dead. Forever gone from this earth. But God,
why?! He was only 18! He had so much life left to live! How can you do this?
Why would you do this? I don’t understand. Honestly, I probably never will.
As the news spread, I see pictures of Qu on social media. I
read stories about the joy he brought to others, the laughs and smiles that
were shared with him. I see videos of the silly dance moves that he unashamedly
showed off. My heart continues to break. What do you say to your two teammates,
one who is his twin brother and the other his best friend? There aren’t words
gentle enough to make the tears stop. There aren’t words encouraging enough to
lift their spirits. So you say what you can and hope that they know you mean
it.
One of the most afflicted men in the Bible, Job, has a lot
to teach us about loss. God allowed Satan to take away his family, his
livestock, his money and his health. If anyone had a reason to curse God it was
him. Upon hearing the news that all of his livestock, his servants, and his
children had been killed, the Bible says that Job “got up and tore his robe and
shaved his head. The he fell to the ground in worship and said: ‘Naked I came
from my mother’s womb and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has
taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.’” What an atypical response to
tragedy. I’ll be the first to admit that more often than not, my initial
instinct is not to worship God when tragedy strikes. I want to question God, I
want to know why, and I want to know the purpose, the plan. But Job reminds me
that the Lord is in control. He gives and he takes away, sometimes unexpectedly
and sooner than we would wish. While Job was sitting among the ashes in his
mourning, God allowed Satan to take Job’s health, but he had to spare his life.
Job was covered in sores from head to toe and the Bible tells us that Job’s
wife told him to curse God and die but Job refused. He asked her the question,
“Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” What a great question to ask
and to gain perspective. God is God in the good and the bad. He is present in
our highest times and our lowest times. He is worthy of our worship on the top
of the mountain and in the valley below. As for the questioning of God’s plan,
we are reminded in Isaiah 55 that God’s ways and thoughts are not like our own.
“‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’
declares the Lord. ‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher
than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.’”
In situations like this
one, we want to know why, but we have to have faith, even in the darkest,
lowest valley that we find ourselves in. Faith that God is in control. Faith
that God does not make mistakes. Faith that God is just. Faith that God will
never leave us nor forsake us. Right now, we mourn with those who mourn and
pray for peace, comfort, and healing in the lives of those who knew Qu.
Rest easy, Qu. This season is for you. We love
you and will miss you.
