The Lord is close to the brokenhearted;
he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.
he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.
Psalm 34:18
On April 16, 2007, a very bad thing happened. A Senior at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg Virginia went on a rampage and killed 32 students before completing his own suicide. To say the student body was rocked, would be an understatement. Even today, there is still a sense of mourning and loss.
As part of the Public Safety Chaplaincy Certification program, in which I am currently enrolled, we spent this past weekend on the Virginia Tech Campus. We met with some of the First Responders and prayed our way through the building. When such horrific things happen, there are no words that are helpful as you try to make sense of what has happened.
I've learned that, as a Chaplain, sometimes the best ministry you can provide is to just be there and not fill the silence with pointless words. One of the first questions I get asked in tragic situations is "Why? Why did this have to happen?" And, while I could give a sermon or two on the subject, I don't have the answers and chances are anything I say will fall on deaf ears anyway.
But one thing I have seen over and over, tragic events bring people together. I have seen families who had been at each other's throats, until a family member died. Then they came together again as a family.
Why do we wait for tragedy to come together?
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