So Young, Gone Too Soon

Carolina campuses are a bit more somber and silent this week in light of the weekend tragedy that claimed the lives of seven college students (6 from USC, 1 from Clemson) who perished in a fire at a beach house in North Carolina. Investigators are still combing the ashes for clues and the cause. Mourners, parents and emergency personnel can take solace in the fact that it could've been much worse, were it not for the six students who survived.

We owe these families our prayers. Hail to both state universities for putting aside their athletic differences and holding prayer vigils and mourning each death regardless of team color or school. Yes, this goes way beyond a simple collegiate rivalry, but you wouldn't believe how deep that rivalry runs on an average day. How very cool that it doesn't run deeper than our appreciation for the sacredness of life, all lives, regardless of origin, skin color, religious beliefs and college preference! News reports earlier this week noted that students at USC placed an orange and white flower arrangement next to the six USC colored arrangements in a makeshift memorial. And Clemson students held a prayer vigil recognizing all seven victims on Halloween when the rest of America's campuses were no doubt filled with candy, parties and costumes.

God's grace, comfort and love to each and every family who suffered loss. And clarity, understanding and His presence to those who survived and can't make sense out of any of it. Soul poet Rich Mullins, who died way too young in a car wreck several years ago penned the words of my heart in this circumstance in a song entitled, "Be With You":

Chorus 1
And when my body lies in the ruins
Of the lies that nearly ruined me
Will You pick up the pieces
That were pure and true
And breathe Your life into them
And set them free
And when You start the world over again from scratch
Will You make me anew out of the stuff that lasts
Sutff that's purer than gold is
Clearer than glass could ever be
And can I be with You
Can I be with You

Verse 1
Ev'rybody each and all
We're gonna die eventually
It's no more or less our faults
Than it is our destiny
So now Lord I come to You
Asking only for Your grace
You know what I'm puttin' myself through
All those empty dreams I chased

Verse 2
And ev'rybody all and each
From the day that we are born
We have to learn to walk
Beneath those mercies
By which we're drawn
And now we wrestle in the dark
With these angels that we can't see
We will move on although the scars
O Lord move inside

Chorus 2
And when my body lies in the ruins
Of the lies that nearly ruined me
Will You pick up the pieces
That were pure and true
And breathe Your life into them
And set them free
And when You blast this cosmos to kingdom come
When those jagged-edged mountains I love are gone
When the sky is crossed with the tears
Of a thousand falling suns
As they crash into the sea
Can I be with You
Can I be with You

Authors Justin Peters, Rich Mullins
Copyright 1987 BMG Songs, Inc. (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing)|(Admin. by BMG Music Publishing)
River Oaks Music Company (a div. of EMI Christian Music Publishing)

Father, may they be with you! May those of us who are left behind be grateful for one more breath, one more smile, one more day of life in your creation. May their deaths remind us of how sacred and precious life is, and that it's all gift.