Truly, The Finest.

I stood numb and in disbelief as I watched my husband cup his hands to his face.  He wept aloud.

We received news that we had just lost a precious friend.

Major David Gray.

Truly, one of the very finest of men.

Truly.

We met David and Heather years ago when we were stationed at the same Air Force base.  We met on a Sunday afternoon.  The Gray's were new in town, and they were visiting our church.  It was potluck Sunday.  We sat next to each other in the fellowship hall, and there our friendship began.  From then on, our lives have intertwined.

We tend to think of the good things when we reflect back on someone's life, but truly... all memories I have of David are supreme.  He was a rare man of the highest quality.

During those early days of our friendship, David had a tragic accident.  He drowned during some intense under-water training.  Miraculously, he survived the incident and came out of the hospital with only a small scar on his left forearm (a mishap with the IV).  This scar was a physical sign to all of us that David had been "marked" by God.

The above photos are from a photo album that Heather put together for our family when we moved.  That album has been a treasure to us over the years... a small piece of the memories we held with our friends during that season of our lives.

And now, it is even a greater treasure.

Please pray for my friend Heather, and her three children.

I cannot imagine her heartache.  But I know that she does not mourn as those who have no hope (1Thess4:13-18).

Penned yesterday by Heather:

I thank you for prayers and remembrances as we mourn the loss of my beloved husband david. Anyone who met him, immediately knew he was Gods special masterpiece. But just like a great work of art, he was merely on loan to us from the creator. Please pray for my children. David's dignified transfer happens today then in the morning I will return home to tell them the sad news. I want to thank my amazing friends, especially Mandy Daniel Fernihough and the people of Alethia church for being a human shield around my family so that I could grieve and gather strength... David would want you all to remember the many good times, have a personal relationship with the lord, love your family as well as he did (although his humble spirit would have been the first to say he had flaws) and then he'd say, it's time to "press on". We love you all and appreciate the kind words. 

Another article about David here and a recent video of Heather speaking at her and David's alma mater here.