Phillip Joel Hughes (30 November 1988 – 27 November 2014) was an Australian Test and One Day International cricketer who played domestic cricket for South Australia. On 25th November 2014, Hughes was hit in the neck by a bouncer, during a match at the Sydney Cricket Ground. The injury caused a haemorrhage. Hughes was taken to hospital in Sydney where he underwent surgery. However, he died on 27th November—having never regained consciousness—three days before his 26th birthday.

This kind of death is usually referred to as an untimely death. But in fact, no death is untimely. Every death is a timely death according to the Creation Plan of God. Every death is consciously planned by the Creator. The form may differ but in terms of its reality, every death is the same.

Every death gives a message to those alive that they still have their chance and therefore must avail of it.

Every person is born into the world according to a divine plan. Each person spends his life on earth for a limited period. To be born is to be given a chance. During one’s life every person is watched by angels, every moment. When a person reaches the end of his destined period, death is decreed for him by the Creator—neither before nor after. The manner of death is irrelevant; the fact remains that the time of death has approached for the concerned person.

Every death gives us a message. One who dies has availed his chance and it does not exist for him any longer. For those who are alive, every death gives a message that they still have their chance and therefore must avail of it.