There is no way to minimize
the impact or mitigate the
grief caused by the accident
that occurred in our parking
lot on the third Sunday
night of last November
(2006) that
injured Debbie Smith and
killed little 7-year-old
Alex Weng. It was, and is, a
terrible tragedy.
As I said in my sermon on
the following Sunday
morning, intellectually we
understand that in this
broken, fallen world,
accidents can happen to
anyone at any time, but
still emotionally it seems
worse when it happens in our
own parking lot, right after
a festive fellowship
gathering, and to a sweet
and innocent little girl.
When such a tragedy occurs
it prompts anguished
soul-searching and raises
all sorts of faith
questions. This is
nothing new, of course -
such issues have all been
raised before, at great
length, in the book of Job,
one of the most ancient
books in the Bible.
Questions are many - but in
this world, answers are few.
There are only three things
I can say with certainty.
First, God knows how we
feel, because He, too, lost
a child. And, because of
the sacrificial death of His
Son, I am confident that
Alex Weng is happier now
than she has ever been
before. She is in heaven,
where her angel "continually
beholds the face of the
Father" (Matthew 18:10).
Second, before Alex left
this earth, she came to know
genuine joy through her
association with Debbie
Smith and her experiences
here at church. Alex had
many, many questions about
Jesus, the church, and
heaven, and Debbie answered
all of them patiently and
thoroughly. It was Alex's
own decision to be
recognized as a "child of
this church," and Debbie
tells me that the weeks
before the accident were
likely the happiest time in
Alex's life.
Third, this church family
demonstrated the love of
Christ in response to this
awful accident. In spite of
language barriers our people
have tried, and continue to
attempt, to minister to the
grieving Weng family. They
wanted Alex to know Jesus -
and she did. Through the
actions of dozens of our
church members, many of whom
were at the hospital all
week long, the family
received a visible
demonstration of the love of
Christ and the high regard
in which we held their
daughter.
I appreciate the leadership
of our shepherds in
responding to this tragedy;
they personally ministered
to everyone involved in this
tragedy. I am also
astounded by the flood of
calls, e-mails, and letters
from many individuals and
churches, here in our
community and around the
nation, who have told us
they are praying for us.
With the blessing of Alex's
parents, we have formed the
Alex Weng "Kid's Camp"
Memorial Scholarship. The
goal of the Scholarship
Fund, to make it possible
for children in years to
attend "Kid's Camp" who
might not otherwise be able
to participate, will be a
fitting memorial to a little
girl who was thrilled to
attend camp and learn about
Jesus.
If you wish to make a
donation, make your check
out to "College Avenue
Church of Christ," note on
the MEMO line it is for the
Alex Weng Memorial Fund,
and mail it to Box 10040,
El Dorado, Arkansas 71730.
-Dan
