By Marcus Kelly
New Life Foursquare
Tragedy is the one thing that every family throughout human history has in common. The earliest family in the Bible had to deal with tragedy, as one brother killed the other. Our families are really no different. Not every family’s tragedy looks the same, whether it is divorce, cancer, the sudden tragic loss of a loved one, or even the loss of innocence in a young person. All tragedies are unique.
I guess what I’m saying is everyone has to deal with tragedy and it sucks. Three weeks ago I lost a friend to cancer. He was only 36 years old. He was a great guy, a firefighter, husband, father and friend to many. He’s one of those friends that I don’t remember not ever knowing. We grew up playing together in the church nursery. His battle with cancer was fast, brutal and tragic.
Our community over the last few weeks has had some very tragic and public events take place. The easy thing to do would be to stick our collective heads in the sand, not looking or speaking to anyone thereby avoiding any socially awkward moments. But I’d like to share with you some scriptures that bring me comfort and peace in times of tragedy.
Often, in times likes these, I go to the Psalms. King David was no stranger to hard and tragic times. Psalm 91 is especially comforting to me and has many great promises.
1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress;
My God, in Him I will trust.”
3 Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler
And from the perilous pestilence.
4 He shall cover you with His feathers,
And under His wings you shall take refuge;
His truth shall be your shield and buckler.
5 You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,
Nor of the arrow that flies by day,
6 Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,
Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.
7 A thousand may fall at your side,
And ten thousand at your right hand;
But it shall not come near you.
8 Only with your eyes shall you look,
And see the reward of the wicked.
Through this Psalm God gives us the promise that he will not only provide refuge but he himself will be our refuge, our place of safety.
I want to encourage each of you, as you go through and process the tragedies in your life, to look to Christ as your place of refuge. I’m not talking about merely giving a nod to religion and its role in society, but allowing God to truly be that place of refuge. There is a promise in the book of John that his spirit will give you a peace that passes all understanding. These aren’t only nice writings that pastors pull out during hard times, these are writings that come with a tremendous promise from God, the promise of his protection and his peace. I know what I’m writing seems very simplistic and could even sound naive to some, but I know from experience, that we serve a loving God whose ways are complex and not our ways and his love is truly a simple love. I have one more scripture I’d like to leave you with. This scripture out of Isaiah 61 prophesies about the ministry of Christ…”to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion – to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.”
