It doesn't seem fair that James died young. I wonder how he felt about it. Maybe the last words of another faithful servant can indicate what James thought at the end. Allen Gardiner, faithful missionary to Picton Island at the southern tip of South America, experienced many hardships and physical difficulties in serving Jesus. He died on the mission field of starvation.
When his body was found, his diary lay nearby. It bore the record of hunger, thirst, wounds, and loneliness. The last entry showed the struggle of a shaky hand trying to write legibly. It read, "I am overwhelmed with a sense of the goodness of God." My guess is, James felt this, a sense of gratitude for having been called away from a fishing boat to a cause worth giving his life for, even when young.
John lived long. He wrote five New Testament books. His highest honor was being known as the disciple Jesus loved (JN 13:23). Jesus loves all people equally, but being human, was subject to bonding with certain personalities. Temperaments can resonate.
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