Habakkuk 3:17-19 Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights.

We live in a post 9/11 world. That hardly requires any explanation to those who were alive on that day (September 11, 2001). But for the sake of those who follow after it marked the beginning of significant terrorist attacks first in the United States and subsequently in parts of Europe. Not only that, more recently the mayhem is being compounded by mass shootings in the United States for reasons other than terrorism. When I first drafted this text three mass shootings had taken place in a 40-day period in Las Vegas, New York and Texas.  The last of the three was on worshipers in a church in Sutherland Springs, Texas on Sunday, November 5, 2017 and at that point 26, including children, were dead and another 20 were hospitalized.

I have not been at the scenes of these incidents but every time there is a new one, I am first shocked, then paralyzed, angry and then sorrowful. It is gut-wrenching and it is hard to imagine what loved ones closest to the fallen have to go through especially with the added media attention. After each incident I pray to God to help and comfort the bereaved so that they do not become blinded by their pain and experience hopelessness.

The prophet Habakkuk looked at the events of his day and cried out to God: “Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife, and conflict abounds. Therefore the law is paralyzed, and justice never prevails. The wicked hem in the righteous, so that justice is perverted.” That is kind of the way I felt after the last attack and in trying to cope I ended my prayer by saying: “I cling to you O Lord.” The Holy Spirit immediately responded with the following:

“And so you should. It is not that I do not see these things but you must understand that evil will have sway for a time. I am the Lord God of time and eternity and from eternity these things are minute. My children must hope in me alone and live by their faith. My reward for the righteous is certain and I do not take lightly the evil that is committed against them. Rest assured that my eyes are upon them. I am the rewarder of those who diligently seek me.”