As I watched the news about the growing California fires, my ears were piqued when I heard the city Altadena mentioned. A dear friend from my days in Southern California lived there. I reached out to her and the next day got the mind-blowing news. Their home was destroyed.
I can’t quite comprehend what my friend’s family and all those who have lost homes must be experiencing. What would it have been like to grab your family, animals, and sentimental stuff and run for your life? How do you respond when you hear that your home has been burned to the ground? How will you spend the days ahead finding some semblance of normalcy? I tried to put myself in her place and consider what it must feel like.
I sense when we watch horrific happenings like this, that many can question God. How could God possibly allow this? Where was God when your house burned? How could you say God is good? Why didn’t God stop this from happening?
The raw pain of what’s going on in SoCal will not go away anytime soon. The pain is so intense that it’s as if those suffering groan in pain. I think of Paul in Romans 8:22-24 when he uses the metaphor of childbirth to describe the pain of the world and the hope of new life:
“For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope, we were saved.” (Romans 8:22-24)
Let’s focus in on the word “groaning.” The Greek word for “groan” is ‘systenezai.’ It carries with it the sense of our cries of pain somehow joining together.(Doug Bratt, Romans 8:22027 Commentary) This suggests that we don’t groan solo. It’s both God’s creation and God’s creatures.
Thankfully there’s hope for our groaning. There’s hope in God’s salvation. There’s hope that the suffering and groaning we experience now is not the end of the story. There’s hope that one day the whole earth will be covered with the glory of God.
So, today, we run to God because He is God. He is sovereign over all the universe, and we trust Him to see us through. We pray fervently for our friends and family who are suffering right now. We show up and ask that God would carry those experiencing gut-wrenching groaning. And we care. We care deeply for those around us who are suffering. We pray. We don’t give up. We trust in God through the chaos and brokenness around us. We love deeply.
Lord, be near all those who are suffering and give them Your peace and hope.
“I heard a voice thunder from the Throne: ‘Look! Look! God has moved into the neighborhood, making his home with men and women! They’re his people, He’s their God. He’ll wipe every tear from their eyes. Death is gone for good-tears gone, crying gone, pain gone-all the first order of things gone’" Revelation 21:4 The Message
I sense when we watch horrific happenings like this, that many can question God. How could God possibly allow this? Where was God when your house burned? How could you say God is good? Why didn’t God stop this from happening?
The raw pain of what’s going on in SoCal will not go away anytime soon. The pain is so intense that it’s as if those suffering groan in pain. I think of Paul in Romans 8:22-24 when he uses the metaphor of childbirth to describe the pain of the world and the hope of new life:
“For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope, we were saved.” (Romans 8:22-24)
Let’s focus in on the word “groaning.” The Greek word for “groan” is ‘systenezai.’ It carries with it the sense of our cries of pain somehow joining together.(Doug Bratt, Romans 8:22027 Commentary) This suggests that we don’t groan solo. It’s both God’s creation and God’s creatures.
Thankfully there’s hope for our groaning. There’s hope in God’s salvation. There’s hope that the suffering and groaning we experience now is not the end of the story. There’s hope that one day the whole earth will be covered with the glory of God.
So, today, we run to God because He is God. He is sovereign over all the universe, and we trust Him to see us through. We pray fervently for our friends and family who are suffering right now. We show up and ask that God would carry those experiencing gut-wrenching groaning. And we care. We care deeply for those around us who are suffering. We pray. We don’t give up. We trust in God through the chaos and brokenness around us. We love deeply.
Lord, be near all those who are suffering and give them Your peace and hope.
“I heard a voice thunder from the Throne: ‘Look! Look! God has moved into the neighborhood, making his home with men and women! They’re his people, He’s their God. He’ll wipe every tear from their eyes. Death is gone for good-tears gone, crying gone, pain gone-all the first order of things gone’" Revelation 21:4 The Message
Nancy Abbott is the Chaplain of the YMCA of Greater San Antonio
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