News broke Friday night into Saturday about a tragedy involving a hockey team in Canada. As of the time of this writing, 15 people including young men in their late teens to 20 years old died. There are still some recovering from injuries sustained in the accident. Countless lives have forever been changed in the blink of an eye. In times like these we often search for an answer to the one question that seldom has an answer. We want to know, why? We sometimes ask, where was God? We even at times malign God’s character by saying, a loving God wouldn’t let something like this happen. We resort to these questions because we are hurting, in some cases we are angry, and we want to blame someone. So how are we as Christians supposed to answer these difficult and sometimes impossible to answer questions?
- Acknowledge that we don’t always know the answer. I know this scares many of us. When people ask us a question, especially a theological question, we feel that we have to give them an answer. And while we could give theological answers to the problem of evil and suffering in the world, in the moment, those answers aren’t what people are really looking for. There is absolutely a time and a place to answer questions dealing with evil, pain, and suffering. However, in the midst of a tragedy, that isn’t the time because often the answer is “I don’t know, but we have to trust that God has a plan and He knows what He is doing.” Saying that in the moment to a grieving family will not bring comfort, it will only lead to more questions, uncertainty, and possibly sow the seeds of anger and bitterness towards God.
- Pray for the families who are grieving. Many people get upset when they hear a Christian say that we should pray for the families. They lash out and say, “praying won’t bring my son or daughter back.” They are right in that it won’t change their situation. However, prayer can change their perspective of the situation. David wrote in Psalm 18, “In my distress I called upon the Lord; to my God I cried for help. From His temple He heard my voice, and my cry reached His ears.” For a Christian to say “we need to pray” is the way that we as Christians admit that the answers people are looking for do not come from us, rather they come from God. Prayer is the human acknowledgment that we can’t, but we are going to the only person and trusting the only person who can give us what we need.
- Pray with and be with the families who are grieving. We cannot sit back and be passive in our ministry to the hurting. We must be present with them. In his great theological work, the apostle Paul in the book of Romans said, “rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.” He starts that section of Scripture by saying, “let love be genuine.” Many people will “offer up thoughts and prayers for the families.” Yet few will go the extra mile to go and be with them in their time of grief and beyond. While the world will move on from this or any other tragedy in a week or so, those families will still be hurting, still searching for answers, and still trying to learn how to live their life.
- Realize the gift you have been given. This is an internal one, but we need to sit back and be grateful for the grace God has shown us in that we still have life. Life is incredibly fragile. It can change in the blink of an eye. As James said, “For what is your life? It is a vapor that appears for a short time, and then vanishes away.” Don’t take the precious gifts you have been given for granted, because they can be gone before you know it.
- Look to share the greatest gift you have ever received. In the midst of pain and suffering, people are more open to God and the Gospel. Again they are searching for answers to why this happened, but also they are searching for answers to the question, how do I go on from here? No we don’t want to manipulate emotions or prey on the hurting. But it is a good time for us to share how the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ is the answer they are truly searching for. Only as we have placed our faith in Him, and know that we are His child can we live day to day. Only having the peace of mind of being secure in His love and grace will help get us through life’ most trying moments. When we are with those who are hurting, we are not there to show how smart we are or give them our answers. We are there to point them to the only answer they need, Jesus! It is in this way we can give a simple answer to the why and to the how question.
Example conversation you could have: The pain we are feeling is not how God designed things. The tragedy that you are experiencing right now is because long ago and ever since the Garden of Eden man has rebelled against God. The Bible calls this rebellion against God, sin. The pain we are feeling is the result of sin. Yet God in His great love desires something better for you, and He has provided everything needed for you to experience it. He sent His Son, Jesus, to this earth to be the sacrifice for the sins of the world. And by Jesus’ death on the cross and His resurrection, He now offers us forgiveness for our sins. He has made what was impossible, now possible in that our sin separated us from God, but through His death we can now have a relationship with Him. No, being a child of God will not take away all the pain in life. It will not make you immune to suffering. As long as there is sin, there will be suffering. But it does mean that you won’t walk through this or anything else in life alone. It means that God will give you the strength you need to make it through each day, one day at a time. It means in those days that you are struggling, and are angry, God will give you grace and He will never turn His back on you.
In something that short, you are answering why tragedy happens-sin. But you are also pointing them to the hope and the answer of how do they go on from here-have a relationship with God that was provided for by God, and grow in trusting Him. No one is immune in this life to pain and suffering. As Christians, we have experienced and have been given the mandate to share the Gospel, which is the only good news that can save a person, change them, and change their perspective on tragedy.
Pastor Justin