Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Where is God in the Tragedies of Life?

I've been reflecting today on the events that occurred at the Boston Marathon yesterday. As a runner and a marathoner it struck me particularly close to home. I know what it is to train for a marathon - the long hours, the day after day after day getting out there and pounding the pavement whether you feel like it or not. Someone told me that training is the hard part and race day is the fun part and I found that to be true for me. However yesterday was far from fun for many runners who never made it to the finish line because of a senseless act of violence. I saw posts on Facebook of people asking questions,


  • "Why does God allow things like this to happen?"
  • "Where is God in these tragedies?"
  • "How can you believe in God when things like this happen?"


Tragic things occur every day but they aren't all as publicized as the events yesterday or 9/11. I did a Google search for "tragic deaths" and found this link from a life insurance company which has links to 43 different articles about 43 events that most of us have probably never heard about but that doesn't make them any less tragic: http://www.termlifeinsurance.org/43-stories-of-unexpected-and-tragic-deaths/ Just think how many more tragic events are out there - this is just what I found in a quick Google search.

I found myself in a "discussion" with an atheist friend on Facebook yesterday. We were both responding to a mutual friend's question in a Facebook post: "If there is a God, then how can he/she let such evil happen? I'm hoping the theologians in my life can help me with this..." In the discussion I brought up how I have been through being sexually and emotionally abused as a child, being raised by a mother with a serious mental health illness which kept her from being much of a mother at all, having a fiancĂ© walk out of my life with no explanation, having friends who were closer than family shut me completely out of their life... I have had every reason in the world to doubt there is a God, to question God and yet I find myself clinging to my faith and holding on to God with all that is in me.

So, where is God in these tragedies? I won't pretend to be able to answer that question in a short blog post, but I can tell you where I land when the questions come.  We live in a world full of sin and free will. Could God prevent things from happening? Yes - of course I believe God has the power to do so. And instead of asking why He doesn't prevent some things from happening I choose to think about all the things He might prevent. Of all the planes that take off every day, of all the cars on the road, of all the marathons and other races that are run, of all the shopping malls people walk in and out of every day - how many times might God be stepping in and preventing a tragedy? Likely more times than we know.

Why, then, does He choose to stop some things and not others? I can't answer that, but I can look to the Bible for answers. I think of Joseph - his brothers sold him into slavery, led their father to believe he was dead, and what did God do? God used Joseph in a mighty way to tell Pharaoh that a famine was coming and to store grain to prepare for it. Joseph's brothers then later come to him seeking food. When it is finally revealed to his brothers that Joseph is their "long lost brother" he isn't angry with them, he doesn't seek revenge, he sees God's sovereignty and how God used it for good. He says to his brothers in Genesis 50:20:"as for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today." This reminds me of another favorite verse - Romans 8:28 "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose." God doesn't cause these things, but he allows them and He can use them for good. 

I don't have to look very far in my own life to see how God has taken things that were meant for evil against me and used them for His good and His glory. If it wasn't for everything I have been through I wouldn't have the empathy and compassion for others that I have. I wouldn't be able to relate to others who are struggling or hurting. Would I choose to go through what I have? NO WAY! But, when I see how God can take ashes and turn them into something beautiful I am amazed. I see that this world, this life we are living isn't about me - it's about God. If He can take the trauma I have gone through, the tragic events of 9/11, the tragic events of yesterday, the many other tragic events that happen EVERY DAY and use them to draw people to Himself then that is a beautiful thing. God's desire is for every person to come to know Him in a very personal way - He doesn't promise an easy life, but He promises eternal life and He promises that He will never leave or forsake you.

I don't have all the answers, but this one thing I do know - God is God and I am not. I do not understand all the "why's" but I trust in the One who does understand it all. I trust that God is a loving, caring, compassionate Father Who loves His children with a perfect love. Joseph Rojas, lead singer for the band Seventh Day Slumber posted this on Facebook today: "I'm a father of 3 boys. They love me and I completely love them. If any of one of my children made a huge mistake I would still love them. I may not be pleased about it but I am still in love. Even If my children chose to not love me anymore I would still love them. If I could feel this way about my kids, how much more would the father of fathers feel for his kids? Am I a better father than God? Can I love more than God? Am I more forgiving than the one who sent his Son to die on a cross for ALL mankind? I'm positive that the answer is no to all of those question. God is not interested in our theological degrees and debates. He doesn't just want us to know ABOUT him. He longs for us to KNOW him."  Seventh Day Slumber has an awesome song, "How He Loves" You can listen by clicking the link, and here are the lyrics:
He is jealous for me, 
Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree, 
Bending beneath the weight of his wind and mercy.
When all of a sudden,
I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory,
And I realize just how beautiful You are,
And how great Your affections are for me.

Oh, how He loves us oh, 
Oh how He loves us, 
How He loves us all



He loves us, 
Oh! how He loves us, 
Oh! how He loves us, 
Oh! how He loves us.

He is jealous for me, 
Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree, 
Bending beneath the weight of his wind and mercy.
When all of a sudden, 
I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory, 
And I realize just how beautiful You are, 
And how great Your affections are for me.


He loves us, 
Oh how He loves us, 
Oh how He loves us,
Oh how He loves us.

And we are His portion and He is our prize, 
Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes, 
If His grace is an ocean, we're all sinking.
And Heaven meets earth like a very first kiss, 
And my heart turns violently inside of my chest, 
I don't have time to maintain these regrets, 
When I think about, the way... 

He loves us, 
Oh how He loves us, 
Oh how He loves us
Oh how He loves us.

He loves us, 
Oh! how He loves us, 
Oh! how He loves us, 
Oh how He loves us.
Oh! how He loves us all, 
Oh! how He loves us, 
How He loves us so.

My deepest prayer for anyone reading this is that they would know and experience this love... this love that never fails even when the deepest and darkest tragedies of life happen.

Clinging to the Father's Great Love,

Sherri

Sunday, April 14, 2013

The Simple Gesture of a Hug



The simplicity of a hug can sometimes make all the difference. Last week at church one of the youth came up to me and said, "I want a hug, get on it!" and this week a friend came up to me as I was talking with someone and said, "I just want to give you a hug." It's not that this has never happened before - I get and give lots of hugs. It just struck me that two weeks in a row two different people very intentionally approached me for a hug. A hug seems like such a simple thing, and it is simple, but the more I contemplate it the more I realize there is so much more to it.

  • First, typically you don't hug a complete stranger. A hug insinuates there is a meaningful relationship between two people... there is a certain amount of closeness, a love for each other that is shared.
  • Secondly, a hug is one of those things that you don't just get... you give at the same time you are getting. It's really a beautiful thing - the reciprocation between two people of love and friendship. Last week the person who approached me said she wanted a hug; this week the person who approached me said she wanted to give me a hug... however both weeks, I both gave and received a hug.

It seems so simple, and in reality it is simple, but it signifies a certain bond of friendship and love in a really beautiful way. I am blessed to have friends who, whether they need a hug, want to give me a hug, or both, freely approach me and know they will be met with open arms.

I continue to be...

Unbelievably blessed,

Sherri