Pat,

For many years, I would call my old roommate I had at the school for the
blind.  He never called me.  I didn't know why.  finally, I quit calling.  I
thought of him often because I had led him to Christ back when we were
buddies as kids growing up together.  I always prayed someone would befriend
him who was a Christian and could encourage him since at 500 miles away, it
was a little difficult to disciple him.  I did not know he was an alcoholic.
If I had known that, I would have done more to try and be his friend but I
would guess that his alcoholism kept him from keeping in regular contact
with me.  One day, a friend emailed me and said our friend died.  He was
only 47 years of age, a year younger than me at the time, and my friend
said, he died from complication due to the alcoholism.  Most alcoholic die
from malnutrition unless, of course, their liver dies first.  This bothered
me for years but there was literally nothing I could do.  I often wished I
had called him more often to try and encourage him but I didn't know because
he had never told me of his drinking problem.  I felt guilty I hadn't called
him for three or four years but then again, he never called me either.  One
day I received an email from a lady.  I didn't know her.  she had been my
friends girl friend, sort of, but more than that, she was his best friend.
She was a Christian and she confirmed that although he spoke of Christian
things rarely, he did tell her that I had led him to the Lord when we were
teenagers.  It was wonderful to her how this lady had spiritually and
Scripturally encouraged him and even worked his vending machine for him when
his alcoholism kept him from even going to work due to is physical illness.
It just proved to me that God heard and answered my prayers all those years.
The same can happen to your friend and you may be the first person they
contact when they come to the Lord.  So, Pat, just keep praying and being
yourself.  We may not know until Heaven but God knows now.

Phil.