Returning home this morning after running errands, all I could think about was holding my boys. I held on to them tightly, and I told them how much I loved them! Just moments before, I had been driving home and had heard the breaking news report about what had happened in Connecticut; A gunman had entered an elementary school and opened fire! They suspected 26 people had been slaughtered, 18 of those were kindergartners!
Where do we find reason in an act which reeks of pure evil? How can we make sense of something so senseless? My mind reels… and then I pray. I pray for those whose lives will forever be changed by this tragedy. Like many of you, I put myself in the shoes of those parents who are trying to cope with the fact that the little one who they dropped off at school this morning, is now gone.
Faith is so easy when life is going along smoothly. It’s in these type of days that our faith is tested; that we are surely tempted to ask God, “Why?!” And when there are no audible answers we must turn to God’s Word, and let Him speak to our broken hearts through the Scriptures, allowing His Holy Spirit minister to us through His living Word.
Psalm 34:18-20 The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all. He keeps all his bones; not one of them is broken.
While this incident will surely raise political discussions on both sides of the aisle, perhaps today we should instead come together as brothers and sisters, and pray for the heartbreak of this community; for the heartbreak that has spilled into every heart in our country. While the enemy is surely enjoying the pain that these actions have caused manly families, even in our sadness we still must cling to the truth. Jesus has these little ones in his arms. He has won victory over the grave! And yes, while it is a day of overwhelming sadness, our God is bigger than any heartbreak. If called upon, He will see all of these families through this most difficult situation.
Pray for our country, tonight. Pray for healing in the hearts of this Connecticut community. Pray for peace and healing for the families who are personally affected by this tragedy. And yes,…hug your kids a little tighter tonight.
Lisa Strnad is a contributing writer/blogger to What’s in the Bible? and Jelly Telly. She is a homeschooling mom of two, who works independently in Christian media in the areas of writing, promotions and marketing. She lives with her husband and children in Nashville,TN. Follow her personal blog posts on www.talkinglikeagirl.blogspot.com
