In a heartbreaking post written on Facebook, Bob Kauflin, the director of Sovereign Grace Music and pastor at Sovereign Grace Church of Louisville, Kentucky, revealed that his wife Julie died suddenly during a date night a couple of days ago.
Bob and Julie were married for more than 50 years, and they have six children and many grandchildren.
Some of Sovereign Grace’s most recognized songs, many which Kauflin wrote, include All Creatures of Our God and King, All I Have is Christ, Behold Our God, O Come, All You Unfaithful, and Jesus, Thank You
Quoting Psalm 139:16, (In your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.) Kauflin shares:
This past Monday was the last day God had written for my precious wife and best friend, Julie. She’s home.
We had just eaten dinner on our weekly date night, and were headed out to the car. Her knees suddenly buckled. When she was unresponsive after I laid her on the ground, someone called for an ambulance.
At the hospital I found my fellow pastor, Brian, waiting for me. The doctor came in shortly after we arrived to say they were having a hard time getting Julie’s heart working but were doing everything they could.
He returned not too much later with bad news. They couldn’t revive her. It was less than 90 minutes after her fall. I went on a date night with Julie and came home a widower.
He added “A friend wrote to me, ‘O how unfathomable the mystery of one flesh grown together for five decades. Who can describe or even imagine the depths of such a oneness?’ I can,” he said. “The waves of tears and ache are deeper than anything I’ve encountered. But deeper still is the comfort of knowing Julie is rejoicing with the Savior she has always loved. The Savior who died for her sins, rose for her justification, and is coming again.”
Then concluded by quoting Revelation 21:3-4:
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
Keep Kauflin and his family in your prayers.
