Thoughts on tragedy

There is no easy answer to give those who are suffering, who have lost everything but their lives or those who have lost loved ones, that doesn't sound trite. It is at those very times that our faith is tested to its fullest, stretched beyond what we think we can stand. It is at those times that we must realize that it isn't our strength carrying us through, it is God's.

We can ask ourselves all we want "why?". Why does God let these things happen, why doesn't he stop it, if he can't then why is he so weak, and if he can and doesn't, why is he so callous? We are not in a position to know all that there is to know, as God is. Part of faith is accepting that he is in control, that there are reasons why things happen and that we cannot understand all those reasons. Our inability to grasp the fullness of knowledge and understanding does not negate God's goodness, mercy and goodwill toward us. My kids don't understand why they need shots sometimes, and they cry with pain and fear, wondering why I am not stopping the situation. All I can do is hold them and comfort them. It isn't the why questions that will be answered, it is the what questions. What do I do now?

I don't know why tragedy happens. I know this, GOD IS GOOD. God is in control and has a plan and a purpose for everything. The bible says "all things work together for good, for those who love God, for those who are called according to his purpose." We are all called according to his purpose. He wouldn't go to the trouble of creating someone for no reason. I believe that there is a reason for things, even things we think are bad. Perhaps this bad thing circumvented a worse thing. Perhaps it wakens people to a compassion they would not have developed had they not been pushed to do so by circumstances. That is a good thing, even if it comes out of something bad.

Death is painful for the living. We suffer the loss of our loved ones. The bible says that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. In the view of eternity, our death places us with God. I don't think he sees that as a bad thing, it is our hope and our longing, and there is no place I would rather be. When he comes and takes me home I will be joyful. That does not mean that I would hasten my end here, I have a purpose and a plan for being here. It is a blessing all the way around. My life was given to me by God and it is his to take away.

The challenge is to find the blessing that exists in all the pain, and embrace that. Nurture the blessing, while it carries us through the pain and out the other side.