In the middle of the Advent
season, on December 15th a gunman walked into Sandy Hook Elementary
School in Newton, CT and opened fire killing 26 children and adults. Just
minutes before in Memphis, TN a 15 year old shot two Memphis Police officers,
killing one officer who was a single mother of five young children. In times of
senseless tragedies, all faith leaders search for words of comfort as well as clarity.
Some faith leader’s comments or reflections will be helpful, others
unfortunately will not. While we all search of discernment and understanding,
here is my first reaction and response. I pray you will find it helpful in the
days ahead as we try to continue to celebrate Advent in spite of these tragedies
and in honor of all the victims.
Mary had every reason to feel
betrayed and abandoned by God. She was a young teen, unmarried and pregnant, and
lived in extreme poverty. Mary held on through this confusion to the promise of
God, holding tightly to the words of the angel: “You are highly favored, the
lord is with you.” And despite Mary’s confusion and emotionally troubled
reaction in the angel telling her she was pregnant; we find her deep in the
story holding on to hope and faith. In the gospel of Luke 1:46-49 Mary declares,
“My soul magnifies the Lord and my spirit
rejoices in God my savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his
servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty one
has done great things for me, Holy is his name.” It didn't matter what
anyone else in the community would think or say about her condition. Mary hung
onto the promises of God, and responded with a song of daring, boundless faith.
Her focus was not on her emotional state or on her challenging situation but on
the love of God, who promises a future of hope. Mary trusted in God’s promise,
knowing God’s outrageous way of working good out of seemingly impossible,
horridly, and tragic situation. Here is what I know from Mary. There is no
reasoning or theology that can justify or clarify why someone would walk into a
class room full of innocent children and systematically slaughter them. There
is no platform or political view that can justify why a 15 year old kid, in my
home town of Memphis, would open fire on two police officers, killing a single
mother of five. There are no words of pastoral comfort you can give to a family
who did nothing wrong, but instead of buy Christmas toys, will be picking out
caskets to bury their children. There are no magical words or prayer that we
could recite that would turn back time and prevent things like this for
happening. There is no policy, procedure or drill that can keep our children
100% safe all the time when they are out of our sight. I wish it wasn't so but
it is just the reality in which we live. I wish that life was not messy. I wish
that life was always free of pain, hurt and disappointment. I so wish we lived
in a world where only the guilty felt anguish and the innocent are always
protected. I wish we lived in a world where children wouldn't have to die,
where children do not go to bed hungry, and where every child had a healthy,
loving, protective, and supportive relationship with both their parents. I wish
no one would have to battle life threatening illnesses, feel the pain of the
death of a loved one, or the severe consequences of addictions, divorce, or
poverty.
Regardless of what we wish for in
difficult and tragic times it is normal that we get derailed and loose our God
bearings. We forget the promises of God.
In times like Friday we overlook Emmanuel that God is with us. God created us, loves
us, pursues a relationship with us, and forgives us. We can begin to feel,
especially when tragedy hits, even if we are not impacted directly, the lingering
consequences as it affects our daily lives. We will worry more when we drop off
our children at school. We will get angry at the one who caused this. We will
want to blame someone or something. We will listen to everyone jump on their
own agenda and soapbox and use this senseless tragedy to their own advantage.
News broadcast will keep replaying it over and over again to keep ratings up. We
will all want answers; we will all want to do something to help both in the
healing and in the prevention. It is
especially vital in times like these we do not listen to all these voices but
cling to the promises of God.
So in light of this advent
season, in light of the past two days, it is important to return to the things
we hold absolute. First and foremost,
the God we serve and worship, the God that loves us, is the God of love and
life. God did not make this happen to teach us anything, to punish anyone,
or because God is mad at us. I honestly don’t need to know the why but I am
certain with all my being that God welcomed those people into his kingdom with
open arms. I know that those children, those teachers, that police officer is
now in a place where they are feel no pain, where they feel safe, where they
are comforted. God will do the same for us one day also. Second, God has designed us to live in community
and what happens in a community affects us all. We must understand this is
a two sided coin. On one side, my actions positively or negatively affect not
only myself but others around me. On the other side, I must comprehend that I
am not an island although I may feel alone; ultimately I am not alone in my
pain, my struggles, or my current situation.
Emmanuel is with me and so are His people. This is a huge gift. We can
influence those around us with God’s help. It is a time of Advent which means “coming” or
“arriving.” I don’t know how, when, or in what form but God is coming to those
families who lost their babies and loved ones. God will show up. God will give
comfort, strength, and hope. Just like that baby that was inside that pregnant
scared teenager, God will remind each of us that he loves us and we are to love
one another. Especially in times like these. I have said before but lastly: we don’t live in a spiritual neutral
environment. There are forces, there is evil, there is the devil, Lucifer
or Fred, death, cancer, disease or whatever you want to name it, but they are
out there and they want us to panic, destroy relationships, or to lose hope and
faith in God and one another. Trust me. There are things out there that do not
want us to love our neighbor, trust our neighbor, and have compassion for one
another. There are things and situations like the shootings in CT, but also in
our everyday life that will cause us to question the reason of our own
existence. That will tell us to just give in, give up, and destroy our life.
Whatever you name it, it wants you to doubt your worth on this earth. We will
think we are not lovable. But God love us anyway. Even when we try to make
things better we will still make mistakes. Romans
3:23-24 for all have sinned and fall
short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through
the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. We will all still mess up and God
loves us anyway. We will all sin, we will all fall short, and God will still
pursue us, love us, and forgive us. In times of uncertainty, in times of
turmoil, we must clench tightly to hope and faith. We must cling to the fact
that we can make a better safer world for our children and grandchildren. We
must live as those that have faith that God will protect the ones we love. Our
actions, every single one, should be to reassure our children that they are
loved and safe. Don’t be afraid to talk with them about the shooting. Listen to
their worries, fears and concerns. Only will they be truly nurtured and
flourish if they know without conditions that someone will protect them and
that they are loved unconditionally. When we all feel loved and secure, we can
begin to flourish, grow, and transform this dark world we see now into
something brighter. We must love each other even when we feel unlovable or we
feel the other person is unlovable. If we don’t we breed into the next
generation mistrust and without trust there cannot be peace, security, or hope.
We must also realize time is a gift. Treasure each moment you have with the ones
you love, you never know when they will be gone. Hug more, talk more, and
forgive now because you never know if you will get a second chance. Make peace;
use this moment to repair damaged relationships. Put aside the petty, open up
communication, and let healing begin. Pray daily for those who are hurting. God
will answer your prayers. Please remember even in the hurt, confusion, anger,
and scary times in our lives we can learn from the pregnant scared teenager: it
is then we see Emmanuel, God with us, as we are loved by him and that love will
propel us from this season of pain and confusion into a brighter future.
Peace, Love, Hope, and Joy:
Tommy
