My Sister's Journey

This is the account of Rebecca Laklem, my sister. Rebecca is married to Timothy, and they have seven children: Karenna, Gabriel, Autumn, Ellysha, Tiffani, Tammi and Jacob. Rebecca also has a few blogs of her own (see Over a Cuppa, The Fireplace and Out of the Oven, as examples).

When David asked me if I wanted to add my bit to his "Journey", at first, I was lost at what to write. How do I express in words, the ocean of emotions I am experiencing, a tossing of the waves, the depth?

When I first heard the news from David, it was just before Mum and Dad were due to arrive at my place for our early Christmas celebration for the Laklems, as we were in the process of leaving Australia to move to Thailand to be with Timothy, altogether as a family.

I steeled myself for the emotional exchange I would have to face when my parents arrived. I have a strange way of coping with emotional crises like this. I clam up. I appear unattached, unaffected, sometimes to the outsider even, uncaring. Far from it! My emotions run too deep for expression. Yes, I shed tears, but in private.

I know I have to be strong, calm, collected. If not, it would be near impossible to cope with all the emotion. For a few days, I couldn't even bring myself to talk on the phone with my brother for fear of breaking down. Then I began to read my brother’s online journal. The inspiration and faith expressed made my faith rise also. I began to take faith that indeed it was not my brother's "time". I believe also that as believers in the Lord Jesus, God can tell us when it is our "time to go home". (By the way, I have since had many exchanges on the phone and over the internet with my brother).

Even though my faith in God’s healing David is strong, my heart still aches that he has to go through so much suffering.

The hardest hurdle for me in my stand of faith in this situation is the "what if?" Since I am about to leave Australia to live in Thailand once again, many have put that question to me...What if? Even in my own mind that question has popped up, I am only human after all.

Time is short. I have been on "waiting list" for the past 2 weeks and even now with a definite date of departure, there is but a few days before we leave.

But let me tell you something...in pure faith, true faith in a God that does the impossible, there is no "what if".

It is not David’s time to go home. God has made it clear to all of us and to many others.

In faith I stand, in faith I hope, in faith I love.

I love you David. Whether here, or in Thailand, I will see you soon.

Your Sis, Bec.