Posted by Eric Dear Stutzman Family, I can not even imagine the sense of grief your family must be facing as you try to come to grips with the loss of Tyler, and try to understand WHY God chose to take someone so young, with so much enthusiasm for living. eric
on 2/3/2004, 12:43 am
153.42.223.128
Shortly after Tyler passed away, I wrote this to his family. They asked that I post it on the website as an ecouragement to others. You are all still in my thoughts. Tyler: you're the man.
After I got home from the visit with Tyler, I was sharing with my parents about how the experience had impacted me. It still blows my mind that Tyler was persistant enough to graduate, even when he knew that he may not live very much longer. As i told my family about Tyler (with a double major in German/Spanish), I got choked up and couldnt help but think man, what is God doing It seemed like such a waste of talent to take someone like Tyler, so soon. Having studied with Tyler in Ecuador, I couldnt help but think about the countless hours that were spent studying....and now...all of that seemed like a waste. All of his passions and efforts had turned up fruitless------>by a human standard. Someone as talented as Tyler would have gone far. By human standards, he would have been successful in life.
After having thought about the experience, especially after tyler passed away. I really tried to think of the REAL purpose of life. Not OUR standards but GODs. God does not measure success by how much money we make in a lifetime. Right after Tyler passed away, it was very difficult not to think of things from a HUMAN perspective.
As the Bible says, God will never make us face more than we are able to handle. Tyler was chosen to face such a struggle, because he was a persistant and strong person. God used Tylers struggle to teach many people what life is really about. Tylers attitude as he faced cancer was amazing. He remained optimistic without complaining---exactly what Christ would have for our lives. Based on GODS standards Tylers work on earth was done. God started a good work in tyler, and DEFINITLY completed it. Tyler has gone to a better place now, I am sure of it. It is a shame that all of us take 75 years to finish what Tyler accomplished in only 20 short years.
I will continue to pray for your family as you continue to grieve. Just wanted to encourage you to try to look at Tylers life from GODS eyes. He is in a better place now, and we will all be seeing him again pretty soon. In sarcastic tyler style, he will probably say...What took you guys so long!
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