Slideshow image

Hi everyone! I hope your week is going well. Mine has been very good on the home front, though I confess that I’ve found the newspapers difficult to read for the past few days. The unfolding stories coming out of Texas, relating to the flooding of the Guadalupe River, have been quite heartbreaking.

In truth, reading the news is a heartbreaking exercise almost all of the time. Every week, I thumb through articles about floods, famines, earthquakes, wars, and other disasters that destroy homes and ruin the lives of men and women and far too many children in places all around our world. The string of tragic stories is so constant that it’s hard not to become a little desensitized to it all. I pray regularly that the Lord will let me see these things through His eyes, maintaining an appreciation for the tragedy involved, and motivating me to lift people up in prayer and support relief efforts where I am able. I recall that though He knows all these things so well, and though He is never surprised by them, His compassion and concern for our broken world only deepens—He never becomes calloused or uncaring just because there is so much of it. I want His love for a lost world that needs His touch.

At the same time, I’ve found this past week’s events especially painful to hear. This disaster feels closer to home than most (we have friends and family in Texas). And, as a person who has a long history with Christian camps and a soft spot in my heart for camping ministry, I’m very conscious of the waves of grief that will be washing through churches and families who not so long ago joyfully dropped their girls off for a week of fun, friendship, and spiritual growth. Many of those who’ve suffered losses are our brothers and sisters in Jesus, and they certainly need our prayers these days.

Dear Father, You know the pain, sorrow, shock, disbelief, anger, and all the other emotions that our brothers and sisters in Texas are feeling in the wake of the recent flooding. You know better than any of us. And I am certain Your own heart aches along with theirs. Please, let the families and churches who have been so terribly impacted sense Your presence during this dark time. Grant them comfort. Allow them to sleep. Give them the strength to carry their grief and to support one another. Give wisdom to those who will walk with them, and strength and safety to all who are still combing through the wreckage and working to bring the region back to order. Please supply what is needed, in a time when an awful lot is needed!

 Lord, we don’t understand why You allow these things to happen, and we don’t claim to know how You will work through this situation. But we ask that Your children who have been affected will have faith to trust You, and that they will find comfort and hope in You. Guard them against bitterness, depression, and the temptation to turn from Your side. Uphold them until the day when they begin to see good come from the evil that has happened. And may they have sustaining visions of the joy their children, friends, and loved ones will have in the presence of Jesus. Meet the needs of Your people in this situation, I pray. And use them as a bright testimony to Your overcoming grace in this dark world.  For Jesus’ sake, and in His name. Amen.

 

As this and other tragedies come to mind, may we all be prompted to pray - regularly and earnestly - for God’s upholding and transforming grace in our world.

I had no way of knowing about this week’s events when I planned the schedule for our current sermon series. But there is a certain providential appropriateness in this week’s message, which comes from 2 Kings 4. Our story this week centers on the prophet Elisha. In particular, it describes his friendship with an Israelite woman, her kindness in support of his ministry, God’s gracious gift of a child when she had given up hope, the boy’s tragic death, and a miracle bringing the boy back to life as Elisha prays. It’s a great story. If you want to read it ahead of time, it’s found in 2 Kings 4:8-37.  (For a little more context, start at 2 Kings 4:1, and consider comparing to a related story about Elijah in 1 Kings 17:9-24.)

This week, we’re going to focus more on the characters in the story than on the child’s resurrection. But obviously, that event is the high point in the account, and it’s a wonderful reminder of God’s deep care for families and children, and His willingness to hear prayer during times of tragedy. I’ve found it to be a source of encouragement this week, and hope it will have the same effect for everyone.

In the meantime, may your week be safe, fruitful, and filled with the peace and hope of our Lord. May God give you opportunities to reflect and share that hope with others. And may we all be faithfully in prayer: for each other, for our brothers and sisters at a distance, and for a world that God loves.

Grace and peace!
—Pastor Ken