Some days seem off. Something is not right and yet there is great difficulty in pinpointing the reason, if there is a reason at all. I logged onto Facebook hoping to distract myself from the unexplained feelings of grief (admittedly, not the best decision), and I was confronted with even greater grief: death. I do not know the person, nor was the post from anyone I can claim to know personally, just someone whose blog I follow, a family who I look up to in a way for their ministry and learn from as I watch from afar. The wife laments the loss of an individual who died too soon. Recently, we have also watched the University of Georgia respond to a tragic accident which took four of their own and left another in critical care. My mind skips to others I have known who share similar stories.
As Christians I believe we share a mutual understanding for one another’s grief. We are bound together by the bonds of brother and sisterhood in the body of Christ, and there is a deep sense when one of our own is hurting. We experience this first hand when we attend memorials. Whether or not you know a person, you feel a kinship to them. I read another post recently (still on Facebook…) by a girl I attended elementary school with. She shared a letter that she wrote to President George W. Bush following the attacks on 9/11. Even as a 9 year old she felt deeply the pangs of grief for the lives lost and the families torn apart. She wrote asking how she could help, also including a list of the things she had already done. She shared this letter again recently as a reminder that although we are many, in our politics, religion, social status, and so on, we are unified as one nation. As Christians, we know that although we are many parts, we are unified as one body.
So what is our response? How do we cling to the Lord in times of grief, uncertainly, and disappointment? How do we surround those who are hurting, or who we sense are hurting, without being in their actual presence? We pray, because we believe prayer changes things. Prayer is the great equalizer. In prayer we are unified. Our social or economic status does not matter nor does it matter where we are physically. We serve a God who is Omni-present. He is able to comfort those who are hurting as we pray on their behalf. Though our feelings are fickle, an unexplained emotion can sometimes be a call to prayer. Remember to pray today for our country, our community, and of course, those closest to you.
