happy and sad

joy and sorrow… exultant yet heartbroken… bittersweet.

That is how I am going to explain today. It was a hard day, for many of us in the K-Colorado family as we put to rest one of our brothers in Christ, one of our friends, and one of my heroes.

It is a sobering moment in life when you lose someone so close and so young. Especially when the loss is unexpected and seemingly avoidable. But I am reminded that we were blessed to have the moments we have had with our friend. They were not promised just as tomorrow is not promised to anyone.

My friend Josh Lantz died last Friday night. He was a lot of things: friend, musician (guitar extraordinairre!!), philosopher, dreamer, son, brother, et cetera. I liked him. I liked him so much I even told him one time. We were walking to our cabins after a long day of camp activities and I turned to him, put my arm around his shoulder and said it straight to his face, “Josh, I like you.” He being who he was, gave me the biggest, goofiest grin and replied, “Thanks Sam, I like you too.”

That was early in the summer and our relationship, was much of the same for the rest of the months in beautiful Colorado. He could not do anything that would change my opinion of him. I liked him and he liked me. He did a lot of things this past summer for us… He mowed lawns, planted trees and bushes, watered the newly planted trees and bushes daily, moved rocks, played with kids, made us laugh, led worship, plucked the guitar, borrowed my guitar strap, returned my guitar strap (a month later…), made us laugh, challenged our thoughts, challenged my heart, and encouraged us with his convictions.

I will never forget this young man, he was an inspiration and one of my alltime heroes. I will seek to be the man he was… an imitator of Christ and a encourager of many.