From Facebook, USA Today, PEOPLE, notes and phone calls from friends, and just checking the headlines online, have come the stories of tragedy, loss, and confusion as Hurricane Helene unleashed its fury, and then left western North Carolina communities in turmoil, reeling from the destruction of the storm, and the recovery that lay before them. I found my own heart intertwining especially with the hearts of those who lost a child. I understand – but, only in part. With Helene, there are memories etched in hearts, that will be vividly replayed for years to come, Personally, I relate Helene to 9/11 with its utter destruction that I had a front row seat to, and I hear the nuances of the same question that was asked at that time. Where was God???
That question has been known to resonate from my own heart, and possibly, yours..... O God, I do not understand. The tragedies that crush our lives, that scour our hearts with their abrasiveness, that steal from us the very air we breathe. Why? Why do the elements of nature unleash their wrath and forever scar the ones who stand in their path? Why do children die in tortured bodies? Why? And God speaks to my own spirit........... My child, it is not for you to understand, but to trust, and to rest. I have not changed. Let your tears fall heavy upon my feet, and I will lift you in my arms and draw you to my breast. I have not changed. I love. I care. Believe the love I have for you, and know I will weave the darkest strands of life together with the golden rays of my purposes, and accomplish a goodness that can only come from my hands. I have not changed. My grace awaits your need, and it pours profusely from my heart of love.
I remember the Bible stories I learned as a child, and then I taught them to so many other children as I moved out of my own childhood. God helped a whole nation cross over a seabed on dry ground. He rescued Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the fiery furnace they were thrown into. He rescued Daniel from a den of lions. God showed up for a widow who was hungry, and for another widow who was grieving. And again and again through Biblical history, God shows up. And it is for us to know with certainty, our God has not changed. In the middle of Helene, God showed up. Not everyone saw Him, but many did, and their words of acknowledgment and praise bring light to the terror and darkness. Gratitude for those who loved and helped others. Prayers for all those who are still hurting. The certainty of literally hearing God’s voice when they most needed to hear. Peace, and even joy, when it would seem there was no reason for either. Provision that defied expectation. Praise for God’s faithfulness, sufficiency, and purpose. Holding on tightly, knowing in His time, the beauty of purpose will be revealed. A very real sense of God’s presence, strong enough to evoke praise in the midst of the screams, the tears, the fears, the losses.
Where is our own Helene or 9/11??? Where has life for us been torn apart, or crushed??? God has not changed. When we long to see Him and look for Him in the darkness, He is there. He has not changed. Let your tears fall in the midst of your agony, and let our Father-God draw you to His breast. He has not changed. He loves you with all the perfections of love. His grace immerses us profusely within His care. He has not changed.
– Bev
(Related Bible reading: Psalm 23:1-6; James 1:17)
