Hope While You Mourn

"No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength. A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great strength it cannot save. But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love" (Psalm 33:16-18).

As we join the people of West, Texas in mourning their dead and wounded, we do so as a people who are not without hope. We grieve appropriately and mourn honorably, but ultimately we place our hope in God's unfailing love. Today and tomorrow, and the days thereafter, let us pray for parents who grieve for their children and children who grieve for their parents. Most importantly, let us join them in turning to God for strength in suffering, not because we should but because we must. The very hope that we exercise at moments like these is our greatest witness to the love and mercy of God.

We cling to the hope that God knows, and God cares, and he truly is working all things together for good for those who love him and are called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28). As John Henry Newman once wrote: "He has not made us for naught; he has brought us thus far, in order to bring us on to the end. . . . What is it to us how our future path lies, if it be but his path? What is it to us whither it leads us, so that in the end it leads to him?"

(Dane Fowlkes, Pastor)