Where was God?

The previous post had been published only minutes when I knew who the next post needed to be about: Ralph and Esther Fuglestad. Ralph was a missionary back in the 1920s whose red sea appeared to come crashing down on him and his young wife. You might, in fact, say: “If God had his back, where exactly was God in this situation?"

Ralph and Esther Fuglestad married in June 1927, and in July they left for Africa. A little more than a year later – on August 12, 1928 – in Lere, Chad – Ralph become suddenly and terribly ill with black water fever. He died a day later, leaving behind his young bride, Esther - now a 20-year-old widow.

Right after Ralph died, Esther prayed fervently that God would raise him from the dead just like Jesus raised Lazarus. She was alone in remote Africa…surely God knew she needed Ralph to be with her! But God took her beloved husband home and did not raise him up again on this earth.

Esther prepared his body for burial by pouring perfume she had brought from America on his body. She buried him with the help of some Nationals and the Commandant from the nearby French post. She read scripture and prayed and wept… I can’t imagine her extreme loneliness and grief.

When my Grandpa got news of Ralph’s sudden death that week he rode his horse like crazy to get to the young widow. God was with Grandpa and helped him arrive to her in lightening speed. A trip that normally takes five days by horseback – this time only took two. (The second day Grandpa rode 53 miles by horse!) He arrived to grief-stricken Esther and consoled her somewhat with God’s promises of eternity. Then he brought Esther back to live with my Grandma and him, and Esther’s grief was lessened as she became the teacher for my young Dad.

So, where was God when Esther was praying for her husband’s healing – and then for his resurrection? How exactly did God have Ralph’s back by allowing him to die and leave his young wife all alone in a country she was still getting used to?

We, who believe, know that it’s not because God couldn’t have prevented Ralph’s death, or because He couldn’t have miraculously healed him, or even because He couldn’t have raised him from the dead. But the thing is: God chose not to. Ralph’s days here were up.

We all have a big, bloody red sea to cross someday, and we don’t know how soon or how distant that someday is. If we trust in Christ, we will be safely brought through that sea into eternity – where our fiercest enemy will not be allowed to follow, nor ever torment us again. If we don’t trust in Christ, we will still need to cross the bloody red sea…but will we make it safely to the other side?

Like Grandpa couldn’t turn a five-day horseback ride into a two-day one without God, we should not expect to safely cross our final sea without trusting in Christ. God has our back because He sees the big picture. He’s got eternity in view and He knows how, and when, He will bring each of His children safely home.