Again He will come.

My heart is breaking for the precious babies that walked into school today ready to learn and play and laugh, that won’t see another recess or hear another bedtime story from their momma. For the teachers and administrators prepared to do their job and love on, teach and inspire little ones, that won’t be sitting at their dinner table with their families tonight. For the parents that dropped their kids off at school without the fear of something horrific happening. For the students that watched their friends die, heard gun shots and experienced more fear than anyone ever should.

School should never be a place that is scary for students, especially elementary babies. My heart aches at the brokenness of this world and the evil that we, the broken, are capable of. My prayer is that those 26 victims that didn’t make it home to their families tonight are sitting with their Father in heaven free from the pain of this world.

            Our natural response to tragedy is “Why God? Where were you? How could you let this happen?”  I’m prone to those questions too, but all I know for sure is that our Good is good and that He hates suffering. He hates suffering more than we will ever comprehend. He hates suffering so much that He put on flesh and lived the perfect life and suffered the ultimate death, so you and I wouldn’t have to.

How ironic that such a horrible tragedy happened in the middle of a season full of hope. A season celebrating the coming of a savior. The Savior. The only sense I can make of it, is that we are called to remember that just as he came the first time, again He will come. He will come in glory and power. He will come for his children. And He will come to set things right and make things new.  

“He will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.  ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.’

 He who was seated on the throne said, ‘I am making everything new!’ Then he said, ‘Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.’”

Revelation 21:3-5

I have no doubt Jesus wept today over these precious lives, just like He did over his friend Lazarus. All I can do is rest in the fact that as much as our God is loving and good, He is also just. My prayer is that the Lord would work and move in the lives of the families of the victims. I pray that He would comfort and restore the precious little ones that had their innocence stolen today. I pray that He would be close to the brokenhearted and bless those that mourn. I pray that somehow someway in all of this, His goodness and glory would be made known. Jesus come quickly.

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. 
John 10:10