Catholic Questions - Death

My grandmother dies last week. Was that God's idea? I ask because people say, "God never sends more than you can handle."

First, please accept my sympathy at your grandmother's death. When someone we love dies, the world is changed forever. But know that your grandmother's death was not God's idea. People say things that suggest suffering and death are God's doing, like "God never give you more than you can handle", or "God never closes a door without opening a window", or "Everything happens for a reason". But the truth is that God does not cause suffering or kill anyone! Jesus said, "I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly" (John 10:10) God is there in the bad times, but that doesn't mean he caused the suffering. Such heartaches come from our broken human condition, and God brings good out of them. So, God did not kill your grandmother. Instead, God loved her each step of the way, even into the life beyond this life. And God is there for you. I pray that God will take your grandmother into His loving arms, help her heart grow to its fullness and fill her with peace forever. May all who miss her be sustained by your faith in eternal life and the promise that love is forever. May you keep the best of your grandmother alive in your hearts, and may you know that you are never alone.