Have you ever had your life touched so much by someone you hardly know?  Did you ever think you could get to know someone so well by what they post on Facebook or Myspace?

I met Kellie Shehan at a retreat in 2005.  As a rule, every Christian guy in college has to play the guitar, so there was a group of us guys sitting around playing guitar and Kellie joined us.  I remember her playing a song she wrote and all of us guys trying to learn it.  I don’t remember what we talked about, I just remember playing guitar.  The second time I saw Kellie was later that year — again, I only remember playing guitar.  She was fascinated by the fact that I could play Dispatch’s “The General” on an upside down guitar (it’s because I’m a lefty).  Somewhere after that we found each other on Facebook, but just kinda went on with life.  I spent a lot of time this week “catching up”, just looking through pictures and notes — I learned a lot about her that I didn’t know.

I’m sure she wouldn’t mind me posting these.  They tell a great story (plus, they are just awesome!)  They are on her Facebook page but chances are y’all aren’t Facebook friends:

“i got this tattoo on my left forearm over the self harm scars that i told myself i deserved for the things in my past… now i know i am forgiven. By Evan at Atomic in Austin.”

“this one is on my right forearm and signifies Christ’s rising from the dead. it is because He is risen that I am forgiven. The scripture reference is 2 Cor 7:10 (typed below)… 7:10 because i was baptized on 7/10/08. By Evan at Atomic in Austin.”

“a wing to cover the NEDA symbol… now a symbol of freedom from the ED”

“For God can use sorrow in our lives to help us turn away from sin and seek salvation. We will never regret that kind of sorrow. But sorrow without repentance is the kind that results in death. –  2 Cor 7:10″

First of all, I had no idea she had gotten these awesome tattoos!  You can learn a lot about someone online.  I used to think that it was kinda like “cheating” and that the next time you’d meet face to face, you wouldn’t have anything to say.  I think the opposite is true — it’s kind of like reading someone’s autobiography; if you had the opportunity to meet the author, you could talk for HOURS with the number of questions you’d have for them.  “Tell me about when you…”  “What was it like to…”.

Erin Kellie Shehan fell asleep* and went home to her Father on May 17, 2009.  When I found out, I started looking through her Facebook page, “catching-up” on 4 years that I missed out on.  I’m in the middle of this amazing autobiography and it just saddens me to know that when I’m done reading I can’t have any of my questions answered by the author.

I’ve been learning a lot about God and salvation these past few weeks and months, and this has definitely shaken my theology, but it has only made it stronger.  Salvation is a gift from God, given to ungodly and undeserving people through faith in Christ.  Even the faith to believe is a gift from God.  What God gives to his children, no one can take away.  And because of the nature of this gift and the gift giver, it is not something that we can “lose” or even refuse.  Those who are saved have the gift of the Holy Spirit which is the “guarantee of our inheritance”.  Though we continue to sin (which is not the same as continuing IN sin), we have the assurance that the price for all of our sin has been paid in full already by Christ on the cross.  And by “all of our sin” we must include our future sins, because they were ALL future sins when Christ died for us.  If this is true (and yes, it is true), then it is all the more true when scripture says that NOTHING “will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  This means that your free-will is not ultimate — God’s will is ultimate.  Praise God!

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* In the New Testament, the word koimao is only used to refer to a believer who has died.  Koimao is Greek and means “to fall asleep” which is a beautiful way to reiterate our eternal destiny.