Wednesday, February 21, 2018
I cry out to God; yes, I shout. Oh,
that God would listen to me! When I was
in deep trouble, I searched for the Lord.
All night long I prayed, with hands lifted toward heaven, but my soul
was not comforted. I think of God, and I
moan, overwhelmed with longing for his help. Interlude You
don’t let me sleep. I am too distressed
even to pray! I think of the good old
days, long since ended, when my nights were filled with joyful songs. I search my soul and ponder the difference
now. Has the Lord rejected me forever? Will he never again be kind to me? Is his unfailing love gone forever? Have his promises permanently failed? Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has he slammed the door on his
compassion? Interlude
And I said, “This is my fate; the Most High has turned his hand against
me.” But then I recall all you have
done, O Lord; I remember your wonderful deeds of long ago. They are constantly in my thoughts. I cannot stop thinking about your mighty
works. O God, your ways are holy. Is there any god as mighty as you? You are the God of great wonders! You demonstrate your awesome power among the
nations. By your strong arm, you
redeemed your people, the descendants of Jacob and Joseph. Interlude When
the Red Sea saw you, O God, its waters looked and trembled! The sea quaked to its very depths. The clouds poured down rain; the thunder
rumbled in the sky. Your arrows of
lightning flashed. Your thunder roared
from the whirlwind; the lightning lit up the world! The earth trembled and shook. Your road led through the sea, your pathway
through the mighty waters—a pathway no one knew was there! You led your people along that road like a
flock of sheep, with Moses and Aaron as their shepherds. Psalm 77:1-20(NLT)
My soul is pretty
much still churning with the reality of the High School shooting in Parkland,
Florida; 17 souls entered eternity. The
families and community are in shock that will cover their lives for years to
come, and a 19 year old is behind bars awaiting more emotional pain than he
could ever imagine.
After such an
event breaks I cannot help but try to understand the shooter’s motive(s). I want to know what kind of pain someone was
navigating for him to imagine this course of action would somehow bring relief
or justification. It never does.
The writer of
Psalm 77 shares something of a parallel to what I envisage as the tortured
existence of the accused shooter, Nikolas Cruz whose adopted parents both
died, leaving him alone, depressed and suffering from mental illness, according
to news reports by CNN[2]. There is no justifying his actions; his pain
does not give license to inflict pain on others. And that is what he did. Nikolas Cruz imposed his pain on his
victims and their families and friends.
May God have mercy.
It is still too
new a wound, but the Psalmist does give hope for healing. After a paragraph of despair and fatalistic hopelessness,
from which there appears no escape, the writer turns to the future and a
God-pathway from the pit; hear the corner turned:
And I said, “This is my fate; the Most High has turned his hand against
me.” But then I recall all you have
done, O Lord; I remember your wonderful deeds of long ago. They are constantly in my thoughts. I cannot stop thinking about your mighty
works. O God, your ways are holy. Is there any god as mighty as you? You are the God of great wonders!
It appears Nikolas
Cruz never got past that corner. Our
prayers for the shooter, survivors, and their community are that they will find
the embrace of the God of the corner and His healing power.
For You Today
When you experience despair, and
the pathway in Lent only magnifies Golgotha’s pain, remember the God
of the Corner…remember an empty tomb is coming in the morning.
You chew on
that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day.
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