The Lord gives and the Lord takes away

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” (Job 1:21)

On March 12, 2023, my God-ordained husband put a ring on my finger, and I became Mrs. David Robert Olson. On July 31, 2024, I reflexively rubbed my fingers across that same ring as I always did, only this time, something was wrong. This time, the precious gem that had sealed my engagement and marriage was gone.

The diamond in my engagement ring held great significance to me. Decades before David and I ever met, my sister, Jackie, gifted me with a diamond for no discernible purpose. The gem came to me in its original pendant setting out of the blue – without a chain or explanation. I wrote all about the ring in my blog entitled, God is in this story – Part 1, The Ring.  

My sister was living in Fort Myers, FL, at the time and was currently struggling through her second difficult marriage. I always suspected she wanted it to be stored somewhere safe, as she told me to “just save it.” And so, save it, I did, seldom giving it any thought as it sat in its used, orange felt jewelry box, tucked away inside a box of other keepsake items I still have.

Less than five years later, Jackie moved to Colorado to reestablish her life with a new husband. Tragically, Jackie’s time there was short-lived. A few years into their marriage, my sister and her 14-year-old daughter, Ashley, were killed by Jackie’s husband.

When God first led me to assist Samaritan’s Purse with disaster relief work after Hurricane Ian decimated parts of Florida in 2022, I had a choice of three different locations from which to labor – Englewood, Punta Gorda, or Fort Myers. I chose Fort Myers partly in honor of my sister, but also because I wanted to serve in the area hardest hit by that historic Category 4 hurricane. Above all, I wanted to be God’s hands and feet where I hoped I’d be most needed.

Regardless of what brought me to Fort Myers, David’s and my mutual surrender to our Savior brought us together. Had either of us rejected God’s calling, we would have missed the biggest blessing of our lives – finding each other. That thought seldom leaves my mind. I enjoy recounting it at every telling of our story.

Psalm 37:4 has become my life verse: “Delight yourself in the LORD, and He will give you the desires of your heart.” My life is a living testament to the veracity of that promise.

But I digress. As anyone who knows me will attest, I’ve never been someone who wears expensive jewelry. Having a real diamond on my finger – especially given how and why it got there – has always seemed incredulous to me, on many levels. Every time I looked at that ring, it shocked me anew. So many miraculous things have happened since I fully surrendered to God on that fateful journey in October 2022. I often find myself questioning how it all came together.

What led my sister to send me her diamond all those years ago? How did two broken people from different states, separated by hundreds of miles, healed by Christ, find themselves in a disaster zone together, become best friends, discover themselves as soulmates, and eventually marry – five short months later? How did that diamond stay in a keepsake box over two decades only to be expertly crafted into a ring that would seal the vows I said to my greatest love on our wedding day? How did my best friend from Bulgaria still have a hand-made wedding dress, inexplicably hand-delivered to her in the U.S. from her father, waiting in her garage to gift me to wear the day I got married? How did a hand-beaded garment created for someone in another country happen to be ready for me at the precise moment I needed it? How did that dress fit me so expertly over ten years after it was first created for another person I didn’t even know then? How on earth did anything between and surrounding David’s and my meeting ever happen?

There is only one indisputable answer to all those questions: God. Our Creator preordained every part of my life to be precisely how it is today – including my meeting and marrying David. My Heavenly Father loves me. Everything I have, everything that comprises the life I now live, was given to me by God. One of my favorite Bible verses has always been James 1:17, which says, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” To that, I can only say, “Amen” and “Hallelujah!”

I know how blessed I have always been. I am nothing without Christ and would have nothing without God’s goodness and grace. I am forever grateful for all the blessings lovingly bestowed upon me by my Heavenly Father.

I also know that nothing touches my life without God allowing it to do so – good or bad. I accept that. Am I sad when things don’t turn out how I want them to? Of course. I am, after all, unquestionably human. I feel joy as deeply as I do pain, sorrow, and disappointment.

As such, I was initially devastated to discover that my precious diamond had been ripped out of its setting and seemingly lost to me forever. This once-forgotten gem meant a lot to me, after all. Still, I am blessed with an exceedingly greater treasure in God and David. When I tearfully shared the news of the loss to my husband, he melted my heart with his beautiful response: “You’ll never lose me, love.” I will forever hold the beauty of that statement close to my heart.

And so, after searching for my wayward gem as much as possible, I let it go. While I may always wonder if it will turn up one day as my precious cross necklace did, I will not over-mourn its loss. After all, I still have a lovely wedding band on my finger, indelible memories in my heart, and a devoted husband by my side. With all that, I have more than I ever thought possible – all gifted to me by Heavenly Father.

Knowing that statement to be gospel truth, I can honestly say without reservation, “The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” (Job 1:21).

No matter what, I will never stop praising my Savior.