Many Augusts ago, I picked up the limp body of little Jamie. The world went on for the multitudes but ours came crashing down and our lives have been forever changed! This August people dotted all over the globe are experiencing their own tragedies. Poverty ravaged Haiti has been terribly shaken. Great swaths of the Earth are ablaze with uncontrolled forest fires. Heat and covid are continuing scourges. On a macro scale it is devastating but for so many the personal tragedies are heart breaking and life shattering.
As our gaze is fixed on the horror of this August, people sometimes wonder “How a “loving God” could allow such?” This is a natural question and I certainly asked it myself and yet it need not be a faith shattering question.
My faith is not based on my judgement of God and whether I deem Him loving or just. It is based on historical fact. It is based on the death and resurrection of Jesus! This is as I say an historical event and as such does not change though all the mountains should crumble or Gibraltar tumble.
My faith sustains because it is settled on this unshakeable foundation. From that foundation, then, I can ask all sorts of questions. No question is beyond the bounds. Tragedies draw me to God as I seek not just his answers but better still his comfort. Tragedies draw me closer to others as we think about the folks of Haiti or Canada’s West and beyond. It draws us closer as we gather in groups virtual or real, big, or small, to pray.
These times demand the very best from us as we heed the command to love like our sacrificial Saviour. They demand to that we are not shy about proclaiming the Good News of God’s love. Sometimes we let people’s questions deter our evangelism when, in fact, they provide an opportunity we ought not pass up.
When I think of the cross, I am reminded that at the moment we would be most horrified God was most glorified. The Good News shines all the brighter in dark days. Let it shine, you in your small corner and I in mine.
On another note, scheduling ‘the trades’ has proved to be a challenge and our renovations at Threshold House are taking more time than I naively hoped. I am though confident that soon we will be able to announce the appointment of our ‘Night-time Pastor’ who will live on site caring for our residents in the evening and through the night. This is an important piece of our puzzle and has been a prayer concern from the formation of the idea of Threshold House. I believe this is a token of God’s favour on our efforts. PTL
Hope & Reedemption 