Preethi

We just celebrated her first birthday. Only it’s not what you’re thinking, it wasn’t a joyous day. There was no party, no cake, no balloons.

   

It was her first birthday in Heaven.

Almost a year ago now, my sweet friend went to be with Jesus. I haven’t been able to blog about her life’s impact on my life until now. Truthfully, I was impacted more by Preethi’s death than her life.

This post is very personal and precious to me and I have hesitated to share it, but it’s part of my story now and I pray God will be glorified through it.

Dad was diagnosed in January and that Spring Preethi was also diagnosed. A small, but mighty, crew of us started getting together weekly to pray for them. Some of those prayer times were the BEST prayer meetings I have ever been to.  And as someone who LOVES to pray, I have been to a lot of prayer meetings. My life was changed by praying with those women.

Changed.

In addition to Dad and Preethi, we also prayed for a precious little one still in his mama’s tummy who didn’t have any kidneys. We tackled those 3 “death sentences” with all the faith we could muster and that summer, sweet baby boy was healed! Where there had been no kidneys, there were 2 healthy kidneys. He was going to live. He could be born. Let that sink in. And then give praise to God.

We were encouraged.

Dad was encouraged.

Then he began to decline.

So we ramped up our prayers.

Dad died in September and I needed to take a break from hosting those prayer times.

When Preethi’s health began to decline the following Spring, we began meeting again.  

This time something was different. Something had changed. It was like going from black and white to color. There was an intensity to our prayers I hadn’t experienced before. There were less of our words and more of the Spirit. God was taking us deeper into the battle, behind enemy lines, and we were coming back with victory. Each of us was hearing the same thing from God, again and again; we were so amped up all we could do was to dance and worship b/c victory was ours!!! We knew she would be healed, we knew He had done it on the cross.  

I didn’t actually know Preethi very well before she got sick, but in praying for her, I felt I knew her. There’s something about praying for one another that births an intimacy of relationship. It was a gift and truly my honor to seek Heaven on her behalf.

The Friday evening of Father’s Day weekend, my 1^st Father’s Day without my beloved Dad, Preethi went to be with Jesus. I remember where I was standing in our kitchen when I got the news.

This time it was personal. When Dad died, I was, and still am, completely heartbroken. But when Preethi died, I was just pissed. It was personal this time. It was a loss that seemed to come at a higher cost. That’s how it felt to me. Preethi left a husband and 3 sweet little boys behind. Like I said, personal.

And you know what? It should be personal. We are losing too many dads, moms, little ones, and friends before their time. I want it to feel personal every single time. I want it to feel like my heart is shattering b/c what’s happening matters.  

At Preethi’s funeral, our little prayer crew sat together, “pooling” our faith. We were going to pray for a miracle until our precious friend was buried deep in the ground. We were soldiers and though the battle seemed over, we weren’t giving up yet. I spent the service going back and forth between weeping in grief and pulling myself together, reminding myself that miracles like this still happen!  

Our prayer group met one last time after her funeral to process and pray together. We seemed to have a special bond, like soldiers from the same platoon (or something…) that had experienced the battle in the same way. We needed one another to process the loss. I needed them.

My biggest take away from that time together was said by a friend: “We did more damage to hell than hell did to Preethi.”

To that I say yes and amen. Her life was taken, but she has eternal life now. As we prayed for her, and for Dad, and for baby boy, we stepped just a little more deeply into the Kingdom of God, we understand just a little bit more now of how to pray. And therefore, we will be better equipped to pray next time.

I don’t have any answers. I know what has helped me to understand better these past few years; what has gotten me through some of the grief. I have also been forced into that place of seeking out peace for things I don’t understand surrounding the loss of a loved one. I wouldn’t wish that for anyone.

Once again, I’ll sign off with 2 things I know: God is enough, and I will never regret getting into the trenches and fighting, in faith, for my friend.

Happy Birthday, Preethi

My sweet friend, rockin' her new wig. Man, she was an all star!
So thankful our paths crossed, even for just a few years. xoxo