"Carol"

See, this is yet another reason why I've left Facebook to go back to blogging!!  I was already a bit sad this morning because it is four years ago today that my good friend Bill Bane, after battling cancer, passed away.  Then, I just happened to check Facebook and they decided to remind me it's six years ago today that my friend CAROL (on far right, with the short red hair) and I became Facebook Friends.  "What's wrong with that," you say...... "I like those anniversary reminders." Well, Carol recently passed away after battling with cancer, also.  And I simply wasn't geared up to reflect on TWO dear friends I've lost, today but...here we are!!

I've decided to make "lemonade" out of the "lemon" of this painful reminder, and do a blog (here, not on Facebook, Lol) about dear CAROL.

We (my first wife Beth and I) first met Carol Gordy around 1984-1985 at our former church in northern New Jersey.  Carol was a very loving, caring Christian woman who was gifted with an angelic voice and the ability to write songs and play guitar. She had all of the fruits of a godly Christian, in abundance, but she lacked assurance of her salvation, sadly.

She moved to Maryland in the early 1990s and got married and had kids.  I had the privilege of reading Scripture at her wedding to Bill Eubert, and by the way...our mutual friend Pastor Clarke prayed publicly at their wedding.  Beth and I "kind of" stayed in touch with Carol, but not MUCH until yes, six years ago today when I found Carol, and Friended her, on Facebook (that is ONE good feature Facebook has, by the way....helping you locate old friends.) My first Message to her was to tell her Pastor Clarke had died at age 99.

In time I learned Carol was battling cancer and so was BETH. In December 2016, Carol drove all the way up from Maryland to minister to Beth in song about 3-4 months before Beth passed away.  We appreciated it SO much because Carol had to rent a car to make the trip, and she drove alone in winter weather...a 6 hour round trip.

Beth passed away last March and six months later, in September I went down to visit Carol in a Baltimore hospital where she was now dying.

Carol was cheerful, upbeat, and (as always) thinking of others and sharing her faith that the Lord Jesus Christ was her only Savior and her only hope of going to Heaven.  Her previous assurance problems seemed to be GONE and I was encouraged how much she had GROWN in the time since we first met her.  Carol passed away about 3 months ago and I have no doubt that she is with her Savior now and forevermore.

But Carol IS missed, believe me.

I was initially a bit upset at Facebook for forcing me to think of (what turned out to be) FOUR loved ones who've died when originally, it was only Bill Bane (not Carol, Beth or Pastor Clarke) that I was thinking about today. But having written about CAROL this way, I feel a bit differently. What a difference 15 minutes makes, Lol!!

How can I be mad at them for making me remember, and try to memorialize for the first time, such a wonderful sister-in-Christ as............................................CAROL??