In Response To Boston – God Weeps Too
Yesterday was an extremely busy day at work. I was running from meeting to meeting with little time to check e-mails or to catch the normal office rumblings when I made it back to my desk just in time to pick up a phone call from my Aunt Elaine.
Honestly, I was somewhat concerned that she might have bad news about my Grandma. After all, she just turned 93 two weeks ago, and her health hasn’t been great the last few years. As I picked up the phone, I could sense a relief in my aunt’s voice as she heard me say hello. She had just received a phone call from my cousin, Jane, who was concerned that I might have been in Boston with my family running the Boston Marathon. (For those who may not know, this isn’t completely out of the question. I’ve run three marathon; however, qualifying for Boston isn’t in my near future. Marathon runners will understand what I mean by this). My aunt went on to explain that there had been bombs going off near the finish line of the Boston Marathon and many were hurt or killed.
The race clock shown in this picture would have put me somewhere around the finish line when the bombs hit. I finished two of my marathons right at 4 hours.
After reassuring her that I was okay, I quickly clicked onto CNN.com to see what was going on. Sure enough, breaking news was just being reported about the bombs in Boston.
A couple of hours later on my ride home, I turned the news on to listen to the reports of what was transpiring in Boston just blocks from where I stayed in November. I heard voices and stories of despair and bewilderment. How could someone (or someone’s) do something so evil? How could this happen to so many innocent runners and bystanders? It makes no sense.
It’s nature to question God at times like this. In the midst of tragedy, personal loss, and senseless violence, we want an answer and we want to know that God is there. As I was processing yesterday’s Boston tragedy, I was drawn to the words of God Weeps Too, a song by Eli.
God weeps too,
God weeps too,
Though we question Him for all that we go through,
Still it helps me believe
And my pain it does relieve
when I think that God weeps too.
I have to believe that God weeps over tragedies like Boston. We will question. We will get confused. We will cry. We will experience pain. We must remember that God weeps too. His heart breaks over tragedy, violence, and injustice.
May our hearts break for the things that break the heart of God.
What breaks your heart? When was the last time you wept out of tragedy or despair? What has you questioning God these days?