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Be Not Afraid Anticipationelderly shut-ins, and the mentally and physicallydisabled. She continued to do this even after her illnessbegan taking its toll.Toward the end of her life, after she became tooexhausted to go out, Rilla wept for the need of theworld, especially for the suffering of children, saying,“Our hearts are so small, but we can still wish thatthey are somehow stretched wider, to pray for all whosuffer.”Rilla’s cancer was diagnosed during my father’s lastdays on earth, and she was the first dying person Icounseled without my father’s advice. Previously I hadalways depended on his support.Like many sensitive souls, Rilla could be a torn,rather complicated person. She was easily distressedabout her perceived shortcomings, and she struggledfor years to find a personal faith. Through sharingin the experience of my father’s last days, however,and realizing that her own death was not far off, lifesuddenly became simple for her.One day Rilla asked me to baptize her, which I didone week after my father’s death. The strength hernew-found faith gave her was remarkable. She said,“I am experiencing grace in my life; the richness andfullness of God!”As her illness progressed, she felt the urgency ofusing each day to prepare for her final separation64