Again, again

Only a few hours had past from posting a prayer on this blog concerning the Boston Marathon bombings entitled "Again" that it happened again. The West fertilizer plant exploded with devastating and deadly fury. Again people had their lives changed literally in the twinkling of an eye. There were losses at every level of humanity and with every loss came a dozen questions flooding the soul, mind, psyche, and heart. How, why, why, why, why, who, how, what, what again. How did it happen? Why did it happen? How do they move on? Who did you know? Again and again we ask, again and again the answers aren't adequate. The more honest simply admit: "I don't know."

Before the shock had worn off and the grief process started for Boston and West, news of the Colorado avalanche, the China earthquake, the mid-west floods and the shootings in Seattle tended to push the last horror off the news with the new horror. And the questions, grief, and prayers started again. Can that amount of pain and suffering be absorbed? Can some well-intentioned but theologically poorly informed saint really glibly say in the face of such tragedy, "well, the Lord never puts more on us than we can handle." Really? Who can handle the cruelty, arbitrariness, timing, and pain that life can inflict? I can't handle all that  much I guess. My heart breaks; my mind shuts down; my anger rises; my soul is confused.  I grow numb.

So what did I do? I started with prayer. I didn't know how to pray really but I bounced familiar words off the ceiling and read some Psalms as prayers. Psalm 27, 31,42,46,80,90,103,120...well you get the idea. I took the nearest disaster, West, and inquired with phone calls to see how I (we) could help. I went and checked on a couple of our White Bluff volunteer firefighters who went over that horrible night. At that point I was told to seek donations and prayers, and stay away a few days. We organized the church to make donations and offerings. Manpower available when and as needed. (I must say I am very proud of the church I pastor. We average about 200 in worship and these folks gave over $5500 the first Sunday\week and will take an offering again on the next Sunday.) Then I read my prayer again from the Boston bombings. Some, if not much of that prayer was answered on many levels. Seeing that I looked at the title again, "Again," and had a thought.

I went to the Bible and looked up how the word "again" was used in scripture and thought of how we use it in our daily lives. Just a simple word, 'again,' but listen again...

Roy and Dale used to sing "till we meet again."
Genesis 8-9 say "never again" five times.
My granddaughter says "again" into the skype camera when she wants her MiMi to play giddy up horsey again.
Buck Owens sang about being "Together Again" to his lover in the old country song.
"It happened again" is in some versions of the Bible and on our lips regularly.
John 3 tells us we must be "born again."
We know what it means for something, whether good or bad, to happen 'again and again.'
Paul tells us to "again rejoice" and also go to some effort to "remind you again."
And Jesus "rose again" from the grave.

I believe this: This world is sick with sin. It will burden us again and again with pain and sorrow; weeping and grief. Good people will rise up again and meet the pain, sorrow, horror, grief and death with courage, sacrifice, compassion, love, and goodness. There is coming a day when these tragedies will happen never again. So let me also remind you again, especially you who have lost so much, that you will laugh again; you will hope again; you can love again. And for all who have lost so much, in Christ, you will see them again.

In the meantime, seek again the face of Christ, till He comes

Again.
Cos