Words from a Released Soul

Today, the families and friends of Jay and Katrina Erickson laid the young couple to rest in Zambia, Africa. The world of missions aviation has been rocked by the sudden loss of this husband and wife. Saturday, they were returning from flying patients to an area mission hospital when the plane Jay was piloting struck an electricity pylon and plunged into the Zambezi River. They have left behind two young daughters.

In human terms this is indeed a tragedy. One that I admit hit very close to this home as we prepare for or own final approach into Africa. I was alone when I found out about Jay and Katrina, and was immediately struck with overwhelming sorrow then fear. Fear, of the unknown, fear of what lies ahead for my own young family on the continent of Africa. Fear of what God would ask me to give up in this world. I believe He brought me to Jay and Katrina's blog, and immediately drew my eyes to Jay's second to last post entitled, Pondering Death. 

After reading his prophetic words I felt at peace not only with the tragic loss of these promising young missionaries, but also a peace with what my own future holds. I can only imagine the amount of peace his words have brought to so many as they grieve this human tragedy, or what peace they will bring to his daughters one day.

Please read Jay's words below. He penned them a little more than a month before his death.

Pondering Death

Oddly enough, I (Jay) have been pondering the concept of death since arriving at Chitokoloki. Living next door to a bush hospital, we hear quite clearly the wails of mourning with each death. And these occur frequently, being about every other day.  In addition, I have been reading through Israel’s wanderings  through the wilderness and all the times God’s wrath was poured out such that  each time thousands were consumed, bitten, swallowed, or otherwise perished. Still again, I have been reading Out of the Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis, which though a fictional work, deals philosophically with death. Even in eating meat here when I saw the creature alive that morning reminds me of the topic.   I did not plan the correlation, but it caused me to think along these lines and realize again in a new way that there  is nothing sad about the death of a Christian. The only sadness (and I do not intend to belittle this aspect) is in the loss of companionship by those left behind. And yet, to contrast this, the level of tragedy is so vast for the passing of an  unbeliever. To borrow from physics, it seems the “equal and opposite reaction.” It warms my heart to hear the frequent  and fervent preaching of the Gospel here. Perhaps it is the real presence of death here that we seem so surgically removed  from in the USA which is the motivation.  At any rate, I hope it will inspire me to get over those  inhibitions which so easily hinder me from speaking.  I will close with a quote from C.S. Lewis which is at the foundation of my thinking:  “You don't have a soul. You are a Soul. You have a body.” And I know that when this body dies, my soul will get a new one.

Posted Apr 20, 2012 7:42 AM by Jay Erickson