Please Pray: Update

Update:

We made it to Arkansas at about 8:00am and went straight to my Dad's house. He and my sister were heading up to the funeral home to make arrangements. They both seemed in shock. Thanks for your prayers. Please continue to lift up my Dad and Kassey as they are both facing several days of just figuring out what it looks like to live without my step-mom.

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This is Jessica's friend Amanda. I'm posting for her because she is currently on the road with all her crew headed for Arkansas. She received a phone call from her father in Arkansas today informing her that her step-mother had passed away. The details are sketchy at this point. All I know for sure is that she was found earlier today in her bed. She has had a history of heart problems and even had a heart attack a while back. This is very unexpected and is a very trying time for their family.

Jessica has asked me to let you all know what happened. Also, she has requested prayers for her younger half-sister, Kassey. She is 16 and was very, very close to her mother. Kassey is the one who found her mother this morning. She is the only child that her step-mother had, so she has no siblings who live with her.

I can tell you that this will be a very stressful week for Jessica and her family. There is a long road ahead of them and, in many ways, life will never be the same. As Jess has told you in general terms, her relationship with her father has been less than desirable in recent years. The same was true for her step-mother. But, for her sister, Jessica has longed to be the big sister that she knew Kassey needed. Living so far from her has made that difficult, but Jess has tried to be someone she could talk to anyway.

Jessica is hurting mostly for Kassey. Please pray specifically that the Lord protect Kassey's heart in the matters of the things she experienced today. Also, pray for her and her father to find a new sense of normal life in the months and years to come. Her step-mother was very much the glue that held them all together. Pray for Kassey to find the strength and solidarity in God that it will take to go through high school and college without her mother in her life. Pray for mending in these relationships. It is a prayer that Jessica has had for years, and it is now my prayer that God will use this time to heal what has been broken for so long. Finally, pray for Jess, Luke, and the kids to have a safe, smooth trip to and from Arkansas. They threw things together in a hurry and without the clarity of mind needed to adequately prepare for such a trip.

Blessings,

Amanda