I just learned that Trudy Pruett Routh passed away today. I am shocked at her passing and at that of her father Horace and her husband Steve, all in such a short period of time.

I have known Trudy since I was probably 12 or 13. Doris, Pete, and Trudy—good Church of God girls! We’d all hang out at different times, largely pestering each other. Trudy was a godly girl and and became a godly woman.

I cannot imagine Trudy’s first sensations when she opened her eyes in eternity and was greeted by her husband and her father! How hard it would have been for Trudy to awaken—still in this reality—and learning of their deaths. It would have been so painful.

Now, I know that her and Steve’s son Ryan must be in shock. We need to keep him in prayer. And I don’t think there is an answer to how such things can happen to godly people, except that the foundational truth we must trust is that God sees the big picture. Also that this earthly existence, which we are so focused on, is only a breathe when compared to eternity. This life which means so much to us will someday be seen for what it truly was: brief and fleeting.

So, God is saying something to us in this. Things we have counted on, trusted in, depended on, loved, are fragile and rapidly fading away. The world as we have known it is reeling towards an encounter with God.

Trudy and Steve’s deaths, because of their ages, leave us stunned. But it is almost as though they have simply gotten an early entrance, if you will, to a place that will soon become reality to all those who love the Lord. We need to start thinking of home. Steve and Trudy are already there.

Pray for Ryan, hug your loved ones, live intentionally, regain what has been lost.

Categories: Reflection