We hurt

Nine people are dead in Charleston, S.C. 

We have no words to express the outrage and the grief.  The questions and the pain. The horror and the shock.

We only know this one truth: it hurts.

It hurts because nine lives were suddenly snuffed out for no reason.  They gathered for a Bible study, something we do here each Wednesday at our church.  While they looked over scripture and prayed, a crazed person entered the church and took their lives.  I trust that those who died were believers, and that brings comfort in knowing they are in the presence of Jesus.  However, we hurt because their families must not grieve them on Earth.


It hurts because it happened in a place of love and peace.  Churches, which used to be open and unlocked all hours of the day for prayer and meditation, now keep their doors sealed shut and keep security teams on alert.  A place of love and peace met the horrible disease of violence and it reminds us again of how love and peace don't matter to the enemy.

It hurts because it's senseless.  There was no purpose to the killings.  There is no reason.  There is no justification.  It hurts because it doesn't make sense and it never will.

It hurts because it's evil.  We must recognize it for what it is: pure evil. It takes evil to kill innocent lives.  It takes evil to shoot up a church full of people.  It takes evil to be racist and attempt to start a race war.  It's evil.  No matter how we try to explain or understand it, we cannot get past the truth of the evilness of the deed.

And in our hurt, we have no response. No words can do it justice.  We sit in silence in our grief.

In Psalm 46:10, God says to "BE Still and know that I am God."

In this moment, with our grief on display, we sit still.  In our silence we recognize God.  We call him to heal us and our land and to bring piece to the families and to vanquish evil.

Lord Jesus, we ask you to come and to heal.

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