“@davidsliker: In the face of tragedy and disaster, active, servant-hearted, sacrificial love speaks most powerfully. Make sense of things later.”

This week we have seen a great tragedy strike our land.  An outbreak of catastrophic tornados have utterly left the town of Moore, OK in ruins, and yet there is always hope.  We see it in the Grace of God and the resilience of the human spirit – hope revealed – as overnight after the storm, 101 survivors were pulled alive from the rubble.  We see it in churches mobilizing from state to state relief efforts.  We see it through agencies that bring food, water and financial assistance.  We see it through generous donations from the $10 gift via text to the Red Cross to a superstar basketball player donating one million dollars.  People do care, and it is tangibly revealed.

And then there is this… disputing orthodoxy, dogma, theology via twitter, blogs, on and on, most likely additionally through pulpits, and soapboxes… how to grapple with the reality of tragedy.  And here I am jumping in.  I will tell you my motives are from a place of great love, desire for unity, and the offering of Hope.  But just as in the links below these are thoughts that each one of us grapples with before the Living God.  I pass no judgment on motives, I do however, call into question timing, and additionally our responses.  I understand all the perspectives given in the below links… and please understand that I don’t believe any are coming from a place of malice, or motive other than to direct hearts to God at a times such as these.  Yet no matter the motive, good intension or desire to help people see God in the midst of tragedy, not only words matter, but also timing and tone.   I offer my thoughts, along with these links and so you may wrestle through them with the Lord.  He is The Spirit of Truth.

We genuinely have to ask ourselves is this what we want to spend our time and energy on, when people have lost everything?  Yet somehow some of what is expressed is actually not an expression of our God at all, and that pains many to the core, and thus, these things must be acknowledged and brought before the Lord.  We see from a below blog link, that there are those who see His great Name “tarnished” by seemingly callused sweeping declarations, or random verses without context or understanding for the masses.  We see from another post, the author desiring to offer perspectives on Sovereignty and our response to the Infinite God.  Most likely all are offering what they have to offer, and genuinely want the well-being of those directly impacted by this tragedy.

My view is this: please Body, offer the Hope held out in the gospel.

I love theology.  In it’s most simple state, it is “God talk” and I love to talk to the Lord and about Him.  I long to know Him more and to, on a daily basis, behold Him through His Word and by His Spirit – Who searches the deep things of God.  Of the classes I took in Bible college, Theology was my favorite.  One example, God & revelation (meaning things revealed – not the book itself) stretched my thinking regarding the ways in which God speaks to humanity, ways in which He revels Himself.  Hermeneutics was another very significant instructional opportunity, having always loved reading scripture from a young age, to have clearer insight and understanding to “dig deeper,” connecting to the language, context and culture of the original text was thrilling – it meant more of God’s heart revealed!  One of my professors would say, “you can always get to the Greek.”

It was in college where I wrestled through those seemingly “hard passages” to find my voice.  If I was called to proclaim, teach, express God’s heart as a woman, I had better get God’s perspective on the matter!  Having grown up in an expression of the Body in which the dogma states that women cannot be ordained or preach, the significance of this wrestling cannot be expressed simply in a few words here.  Yet let me say – since the experience was mine – I would have changed majors all together, thinking that I actually had mis-heard God’s voice connected to my calling and portion, had He not intervened as He did.  One way His kindness was revealed in just the right moment, was through perspective given in the form of Godly council.  It came from a wise woman who also happened to be my Residence Director.  She was also a former foreign missionary who lost her husband, caring for a young son in that foreign land, and still working in the fields of ministry proclaiming the gospel.  Talk about perspective.  Was her calling to serve the nations negated because her husband had died?  Was Anna’s? (see Luke 2)  Yet that is not the direct purpose of this post.  What I want to share is that we all must wrestle through whatever passages seem “difficult” for us to understand and through our relationship with Him and with those He has connected us with, can all come to some understanding about the deep things of God.  And yet, if we were to search every moment of every day – He is infinite, we are finite.  We see in part, and that is another reason we need one another, offering our understanding as the Lord has given us to understand.

I know there are differing perspectives or “camps” within the Body of Christ.  I am not unaware or naive.  This reality seems to be amplified across the west, although since division is a strategy of darkness, it is a universal strategy to keep people from the Wisdom found underneath the banner of Love and connected to the deception of suspicion.  Kris Vallotton has said, “suspicion is the wicked stepsister of discernment.”

It seems at times insurmountable, the notion that the Body of Christ could actually be in Unity.  We have hope, knowing there will be a day, we see it (Revelation 22:17) Unity with the Spirit, Unity across the Bride, saying “Come Lord Jesus.”  And yet, even today, in these moments, I am eternally optimististic that we could rally underneath the cross of Christ, our desire for Jesus, our love for Him, our longing for Him to be revealed – and revealed to those who yet do not know Him.  What a rallying point!  I’m a believer in the power of Love – that which is revealed through the God Who is Love – Jesus Christ.  Paul said that it was “Christ and Him crucified” (I Corinthians 2:2) that is the foundation… “all other ground is sinking sand.” (the last quote of course is from the classic hymn, “On Christ the Solid Rock I stand.”)

What I want to share is that no matter the depth of your theology, there is a moment to share it and a moment not to share… “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven.” (Ecclesiastes 3:1)  Why it seems many felt pained connected to those “deleted tweets” was this question, “was this the moment to offer deep thinking on theological concepts, when children had died and adults lost their lives, homes… everything.”  The loss these ones had suffered… pictures from Moore, OK can’t even begin to express it, even though they are devastating.  When you know Him and have a deep relationship with Him, yes, it is crucial to praise Him in the storms of life as well as in the times of comfort.  The reality is that every heart yet does not know Him, and what we reveal of Him in these moments are crucial.   Remember how we each connected with Him at the  beginning point of our own journey?  Maybe it was the revealed love of God, the hope we could have, the doorway into life found through Jesus.  The deeper concepts or theological perspectives: meaning, purpose, transcendence, Sovereignty, eschatology etc. are revealed later as we continue to walk out our faith.   It is clearly seen here in this circumstance as one woman from the town of Moore, interviewed by CNN, was an atheist and said this in her interview.  How can we touch her heart?  Many feel that to quote Job, as she is standing in front of the rubble of what was her home, may not be the optimal approach.  Maybe, bringing her a meal, or toys or clothes for her toddler would be.  I am not judging, simply offering thoughts and vivid realities that our portion as the Body of Christ is so important in these times.  As leaders, particularly ones respected and with a reach in voice and scope, must consider that any news outlet could pick up a tweet – void of the intent and run with it – and how then is Christ represented?  Also, we must be willing to forgive our leaders when they may have a lapse of judgment connected with timing and tone.  Let’s really not do the “tar and feathering” thing to one another.  Let’s be quick to forgive.  We have important work to do.  And so let’s simply ask: how are we responding?  Oh, and let it be in offering Hope…

I will offer a personal experience that I hope may give some perspective in regard to offering deep theological thoughts or perspectives that may be painful to bear in the midst of crisis.  I had been 14 years old for less that a month, my brother, only 9, when our father died suddenly and unexpectedly.  Having grown up in a Christian home, my understanding of death was connected to the hope that we would see one another again.  Yet this circumstance was unique in that my Christian father, precious, giving, loving, and all-around respected man had in fact, died by suicide. What??  My world was rocked.  I remember the day that I left school early, thinking that something had happened to my sweet grandma (who, at the time had recently been sick.)  Then, we turn the corner, and drive up to my house… confusion ensued.  My steady and kind Uncle Billy delivers the news to me.  My heart sank and my mind flooded with thoughts that were overwhelming to say the least.  I couldn’t grapple with the notion that this was a choice, so my heart reverted to previous fears I had of my daddy being hurt or killed in a car accident as he traveled frequently for his business.  All the way to the hospital, I wrestled through these thoughts.  When I finally came to understand that my father…my daddy, had actually taken his own life, I initially felt the pain of betrayal and confused thinking.  Questioning everything: was my happy, and someone idealistic childhood a lie?  My second thought however, was upon eternity.  I had just been through a youth group study at a friend’s church, a different denomination than mine, who had doctrinal viewpoints that suicide = a one way ticket to hell.  That very afternoon, the person I most wanted to talk to was my church pastor… I needed some clarity and comfort.  What he told me and my brother (speaking to a young child and young teen) was that Jesus’ blood covers our sins – past, present and future.  He gave me the context that the viewpoint with which I was wresting was held by some Christians that you must continually and constantly be confessing sin, and with suicide you may not have the chance to confess and be forgiven.  He gave me the example that in my young heart I could grasp, posing this scenario: if I had told a lie to my mom one day, but forgot to bring it before the Lord to ask for forgiveness and then I died suddenly, would that keep me out of heaven?  It was comfort to my heart because the God that I knew then and know now, has Grace immensely beyond my lack of ability to “confess.”  I am sharing this story for context in regards to timing.  At the time I was struggling with the teaching I had received at my friend’s church, or my understanding of the Merciful and Beautiful God that I loved all my life.  As far as theology goes, across the years particularly in regards to this circumstance, I have brought it before the Lord again and again for Him to clarify, refine, illuminate and reveal.  But I say to you, in the moment, my little heart could not take a dogmatic stance on doctrine of a denominational perspective that many may feel is truth.   I could not take it.

This is how I feel about much of the current circumstances in Oklahoma, but additionally in any tragic moment.  There is a time and a season for every purpose under heaven… the time to offer Hope, food, shelter, love and care is now.  To care for the brokenhearted is the way to express God’s perspective best of all – “because He is near to the brokenhearted.”

The amazing news is that in the midst of this moment, as in past moments of tragic circumstances, there is a rally-cry in the Body to meet the need!  And we are also seeing the pictures of this beautiful expression of love and sacrifice.  This is how we know love… to go, help clean up, be a shoulder to cry on, pray, stand with, offer hope, and love them – right where they are, right in the midst of the pain that they feel… “that Christ loved us and laid down His life for us” (I John 3:16) …this is how we know love.  This is our portion for these precious ones to feel His nearness… He does the other part, He carries the heavy load as we are “yoked to Him.”

~ these friends, have been my thoughts.  I pray they comfort you, and that you also, will bring that which you wrestle with before the One who is Love itself.  He is trustworthy, He can handle it, for He alone is #FaithfulandTrue

“My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.” (I John 3:18)

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The links (below) surrounding differing viewpoints of God in tragedy and some confusion surrounding these expressions.  My prayer: let the oil of the Spirit of God heal & illuminate hearts.

@desiringgod: http://dsr.gd/10QCxCm

@rachelheldevans: http://buff.ly/16MEQKQ

@douglaswils http://ow.ly/liSPe

Different approaches to tragic circumstances and without judging motives, simply outcomes… how to offer Hope – we all need to search our hearts.  My desire simply is to “Ascribe to The Lord the Glory due His Name” and hopefully express the Heart of the One that I love, Jesus.

How do you spell LOVE…