Thoughts on Tragedy (I know, super cheery.)

      This week I have been a little honed in on the coverage of the Joplin tornado.  Disasters are like that for me - it is hard to look away.  And this one is close to home and hit friends who are now dealing with the fall-out.  This is the inside of the Chick-fil-A in Joplin.



That is Bad News Bears.  Seriously.  I can't even fathom.  When lightning struck our transformer, and we were out of power for a day and a half, it was bad.  This is beyond awful, and their house is also destroyed.  They are rebuilding everything.  And, they are looking for ways to generate income for all of their employees in the meantime as well - it is a huge responsibility, and our prayers go out to them.  (We are also coordinating next Thursday as a day where we give 10% of our sales to Joplin Tornado Relief.  It feels like the very least we can do.)

      As I think about this tragedy and so many like it, I am always left with a lot of questions.  Mainly questions for God.  "Why, God?"  "Why do so many people have to suffer like this?" "Why do mothers have to have children literally ripped from their arms and be searching for them, maybe to never find their remains?" "Why do people who are already poor have to suffer the worst in these situations?"
      It is funny, because it times like these, people always say that it makes you think about what really matters.  Which is true.  Buildings can be rebuilt.  Stuff can be replaced.  Lives are what matter.  But what about all the lives that are lost?  They mattered.  They mattered to their loved ones, and more importantly, they matter to our loving God who says that not even a sparrow falls from the sky without his notice.
      And, that is where it gets really hard for me.  I know that I serve a loving God.  He loves us so much that he made a way for us to spend eternity with him through his Son, away from all pain and delighting in his presence.  But the devastation of lives and people is hard to see.  He made that powerful tornado, too.  And he has a plan for it - one that will ultimately bring him more glory.  Which is the point.  His glory is the point.  I have such limited, finite vision.  I can only see the pain and heartache, and when I stretch very, very hard, sometimes, I can get glimpses of the glory.  We deserve destruction, and anything good we get is out of his mercy and love.  But, I have to believe that sometimes the destruction is out of his love as well.  He knows what is best, and I have to trust him, even though it makes my heart hurt.
      I am sitting here crying, because I know that I could lose every single thing and person in my life and that could be exactly what he has for me, because he knows what will bring him the most glory.  What a terrifying thought.  But, it can be a wonderful thought as well.  It can make me cling to him, first and foremost.  It can make me hold things with an open hand, since they are all his anyway.  I pray that he gives me the strength to do this, especially as a mother.  It is hard to hold those babies loosely.
      And, I continue to pray for the people of Joplin and all those affected by some horrible natural disaster.  I pray that God grants peace and joy in the midst of the tragedy, and that more people come to know him and his grace because of it.

Isaiah 55:8-11
"For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways, " declares the Lord.  "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways And My thoughts than your thoughts.  For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there without watering the earth and making it bear and sprout and furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater; So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth;  It will not return to Me empty, without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it."