Blessings in disguise and tender mercies

So, as some of you know a friend of mine past away a short while ago. She was young and beautiful and had a beautiful family with 3 girls and 1 boy. Her and her husband were so very much in love and a true joy to be around. She was taken suddenly and unexpectedly leaving her husband with an 8, 6, 3, and 1 year old. While know one knows why she needed to go, or what other missions lie ahead for her on the other side, all we do know is that her mission here was complete. As hard as this reality was for me to accept, as I looked back on the last couple of months of her life I had a personal life lesson. If we back track a couple of months, because of the poor economy and low housing market, her husband lost his job. This was a hard for them to deal with (as it would be for most people trying to support a family). Now, from my point of view I thought, how hard to lose a job hopefully he will be able to get another one soon. But as fate would have it month after month went by and he was still not working. I am not sure there exact state of mind, but mine would have been - Why can't we find work, why aren't my prayers being answered (as I am sure it was the topic of many prayers and fasts). I think I would have become frusterated that work was not coming. But now that time has past and part of Heavenly Fathers Plan has unfolded, I realize what a blessing it was that he was not working. I also feel that him losing his job was a tender mercie of the Lord.

I have sat and thought to myself several times over the last week or so and I have thought that if I knew I was going to pass away wouldn't it be wonderful if Devon didn't have to work and we could spend as much time together as possible? How many people know that their loved ones may not have too much time left here still have to go to work - because like it or not life still goes on, everyone still has mouths to feed and needs that have to be met. What a tender mercy the Lord gave to them that, although they might not have realized it at the time and I am sure were frustrated at the situation, they were able to spend so much time together. In talking with my friend one day she commented on how great it was to have her husband home. She was laughing and saying that now he knows how to put the kids to bed and that he helps around the house and does "mom" type things that he didn't do before because he was working. What a small comfort it will be to him now to have had those months at home, getting to know the routine, know how to take care of his children, being familiar with the ups and downs that being a full time parent, getting to know his children more and letting them get to know him more, that he wouldn't have been able to learn any other way than to have actually been home for a while. I know that most men aside from being devastated that their wives are gone, are overwhelmed with the reality that their children's primary care giver is gone - and they have no idea what to do with them! Yet, since the Lord is so merciful and loves us so much, he was able to see ahead and know that these hard times were coming and did all that he could to give them time together to love and learn from each other and help prepare her husband for the task ahead.

I am so grateful for a Heavenly Father who knows me and loves me. This has opened my eyes to see that he truly knows best and although we may feel that we are having hard times in our lives, he can truly see the bigger picture and does everything for our profit and learning.

Our prayer are with the Clinton family