There are no words to express our grief over the loss of life in the Guadalupe River disaster in Texas. More than 100 people including at least 27 girls and counselors at Camp Mystic lost their lives in the flashflood. Many have commented on the faith and courage of the young women. Our own granddaughters, ages 14 and 12, are at camp this week in Colorado. We can only imagine the profound pain for the mothers and fathers, family and friends whose daughters were swept away in the sudden surge. Our hearts break for them. We constantly pray for them.
We have learned that our planet is subject to natural disasters that devastate human
life: earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, tsunamis, wildfires. We have witnessed
the destruction that can be leveled on human civilization when such things
occur.
I stood on the shore at Banda Aceh, Indonesia following the 2004 tsunami and
witnessed the devastation that laid waste that capital city. It claimed the
lives of a quarter million people. My daughter and son-in-law volunteered in
the recovery efforts after Haiti was decimated with similar loss of life. A
single year saw twenty-two quakes measuring 7 or greater on the Richter scale. In
one year earthquakes struck Chile, Indonesia, the Philippines, India, Japan,
Mexico, the Solomon Islands, Ecuador and New Zealand.
Natural disasters will occur. Where and
when they will strike and with what force, we never know, though meteorologists
and geologists continue to search for clues.
Whenever disasters like this strike we are prone to ask questions that usually
revolve around “Why?” Even though there are no answers to that question that
can remove the pain or recover our loss.
Jesus addressed this question on more than one occasion and gave us some insight into the answers. When he addressed a crowd regarding a recent building collapse he posed a rhetorical question: “Do you think that those who died when the tower at Siloam fell were more sinful than others?” And answered his own question clearly, “I tell you, no.” (Luke 13:4).
When his disciples discovered a man blind from his birth they asked a similar question. “Why was this man born blind? Was it because of his sins or the sins of his parents that he was born blind?” Jesus answered them, “It was neither that this man sinned nor his parents. He was born blind that the works of God might be made manifest in him.” He then proceeded to heal the man so that he could see. (John 9).Not only was Jesus clear that disasters would occur, He was also clear about how we should respond. “We must manifest the works of God.” We must pray for those who suffer loss and share their grief. And we must give. My favorite organization for responding to disasters over the years has been Texans On Mission. They have a long history of working effectively with local and global organizations to bring meaningful help where disasters strike. They are especially adept at providing clean water and clean up volunteers when needed. I know their leadership personally and have great confidence in them. Donations can be given for disaster relief at www.texansonmission.org. There are many others
