Just over a week ago I posted on events surrounding the heart surgery of my friend, Al Wipf. I closed by saying that God is in charge, regardless of the circumstances in which we find ourselves. This is still true, but the circumstances are unexpectedly sadder. Al died Thursday night after improving steadily following his surgery and his family and friends are devastated, me included.
Experts say that we are fortunate to have five good friends in our lifetime. Men typically only have 2 or 3. Al was one of those friends. My father died of cancer when I was 14. Al sat in for him as I grew older. We went to lunch and we talked about kids, Jesus, the church, baseball, and politics – lots of politics - and just lots of "guy" things. We enjoyed the kind of conversations that I did not get to have with my dad and these talks shaped me for the better. We didn’t always agree (although most often we did) but we enjoyed our time together and kept coming back for more. It was a ritual that I looked forward to and a friendship that we shared for 40 years this year. It is a friendship that, despite this momentary interruption, we will share again when we both have more time, an eternity in fact.
Psalm 23 says that we pass through the valley of the shadow of death. A shadow lacks substance and requires light beyond it to exist at all. Al has walked through the shadow and now knows only light. Praise God from whom all blessings flow and praise Him for the life of my friend, Al Wipf. I will miss him greatly.
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