As a community in the town where I live we are reeling over the three tragic events that happened in our community recently-all within the same week. An elderly man with beginning dementia from my small town of two thousand people went the wrong way on the interstate killing himself and another person. Then there was a young woman from our town who had just graduated from high school in 2015 who was killed in a separate car accident. Finally a local automotive business had a major fire.
It was a blessing last week Sunday morning to find Psalm 9:9 printed in my church bulletin. It read, "The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. And those who know Your name put their trust in You, for You, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You." Then to have one of our pastors change his planned sermon and preach on Psalm 46 was a huge blessing.
Yet another shocking event happened last week a few days later. A family in a nearby neighboring town had their house burn down, and three of their four children lost their lives because of that fire. How does one explain such things? Sometimes life does not make sense to us. There are many tragedies in this life, and our hearts can break over and over.
Perhaps you feel that life doesn't make sense either, dear caregiver, as you watch your loved one decline in his or her health. I think back to some things my pastor said in his sermon on Psalm 46, however. Psalm 46:1 reminds us that God is "our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble." Psalm 46 goes on to remind us us that we need not fear even if what we think is impossible or unthinkable happens. God will help us and be with us. He tells us in Psalm 46:10, "Be still and know that I am God." We do not have a perfect answer for all the tragic "whys" of life, but we can be certain that the Lord will be with us each step of the way.
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