So all of the crew went to a Memorial Service for our friend's brother. Shane's little brother died at the age of 34 from a heroin overdose. It was the most moving incredible service. Daniel was a University of Alabama cheerleader at one time and continued coaching other cheerleaders. I learned a lot about Daniel today. I had never met him and he had demons BUT he was soooo loved. Listening to Shane speak today was so incredibly moving and funny and inspirational and I am so proud of him. He is a SOULdier for Christ. He related Daniel's last 6 weeks living with him. Shane was able to witness to him and through Daniel's time with Shane, he accepted Christ as his Saviour. Through Shane's walk with God, God was able to give Shane the patience and compassion to stick through with Daniel. God did that for both of them. It is an incredible story how God moved through both their lives in that 6 weeks.
I can't describe how brave Shane was talking about his brother. He held nothing back and didn't lie about Daniel's life. He was open and honest. He was also very funny at times as he told of his own walk and funny stories of brothers. I didn't get a chance to tell him, but he needs to be a minister. He would change lives AND he already did. Through God, he saved his brother.
I also want to mention their sisters. Mamie gave one of the most incredible prayers at the start of the service. She brought me to tears. She is so strong in her faith and I had not met her previously, but I was glad to talk to her for a sec at the end. I was crying and I could not get a lot of words out but I wanted to tell her, "Good Job!"
I also wanted to go talk to their other sister, Holly-Go (nickname)! WOW! Her story was powerful and she was the one that found Daniel. She did CPR for 30 minutes on him and there was nothing that could be done. She has her own struggles at this time, but I know she will make it. She kept mentioning what a rebellious person she has been......I believe that rebellion could be a strength in the long run. She can rebel against her demons and just put them to shame. Holly - I know you will probably never see this, but what I wanted to say to you was, "Be strong - don't give up! God does love you and you are worth every bit of it! The way you were able to get up and speak and tell your story and Daniel's....you have more strength than you can imagine! I love you for the words you spoke and you did good! You represented yourself and your family and your brother very well. He is proud of you!"
So....it was a sad day, but it was also a good day as Shane said...para-phrasing here.....Daniel accepted Christ and he is in Heaven and he is doing his back flips and cheer tricks with the Lord.
Here is a link to a tribute video. I haven't figured out how to hyperlink here so you will have to copy and past:
http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.channel&channelID=439439297&searchid=b2911a07-8891-4607-bdbb-671042cd1959
Good job - Shane, Mamie and Holly! You guys are incredible!
Love you Shane!!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment