More thoughts on death, God, friends, life.

Nick Bell was 20 years old and lost his short battle with cancer this afternoon. I am 20 years old.

This is a sobering thought.

Nick Bell was a member of the Mississippi State football team, and I watched him play live and on TV. He is in a montage video shown leading the team out of the tunnel.

Three days ago, twitter, facebook, and the MSU message boards were inundated with anticipation over the upcoming elections and football results. Today, those same social networking sites help to spread the news of the mourning over the loss of a friend, brother, son, teammate, and much much more. God was clearly using people today to communicate the love and admiration they shared for one of His children.

I'm not a doctor, but from what I understand, the cancer Nick was diagnosed with is extremely rare. I am just glad that he did not suffer for very long, and that his family, both blood and bulldog, got to see him before he passed on into the hands of his savior. Nick was diagnosed with Synovial Sarcoma, which occurs in only 5-10% of new soft tissue sarcoma (one of the rarest forms of cancer in general) a year. So the cancer Nick had was one of the rarest of the rare forms of cancer. http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Sites-Types/synovial

We are taught, hopefully, that our God is sovereign and all-powerful. If we are to believe that God is all-power, and that God's glory reigns over-arching in every situation, then we have to believe that God was at work in Nick Bell's life, and, therefore, God was with Nick until the very end.

What happened at the Junction on MSU's campus tonight was very moving. If you weren't there or haven't heard, I'll link the video of several hundred bulldawgs gathering at 7:36 (7 wins this season for #36, Nick's number) to ring their bells for our Bell. It was very moving, very emotional, and very touching. After, from what I'm told, the group joined hands in an impromptu motion of unity, and sang the hymn, "Amazing Grace". All the while, everyone's hearts and minds were no doubt on Nick Bell, #36. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtUchACSsqI&feature=player_embedded

The football team now needs our support more than ever. They have lost their brother, one of their own. While practice will be a distraction from the mourning, it will also be a daily reminder of where they saw and knew Nick the most: on the field, wearing maroon.

Every time we ring our bells, every time we put on maroon, and every time we pass by or step in Davis-Wade Stadium, may we do so with the knowledge that life is precious, and the memory of the great #36: our fallen brother bulldog. I wrote a small "RIP #36" on my bell tonight, and I encourage all of you to do the same. I look at my bell almost every day, and hopefully this will be a simple reminder of our dear bulldog, Nick.

We love and miss you Nick.

Edited to add: Sorry I can't work out the links right now. If you copy and past them into your URL bar, they should work.