There are troubled hearts in your community, even if it is not Newtown, Connecticut. The unsettling events of last Friday reverberate throughout every place where little children attend school. What appeared to be safe, may not be. The time of the Fall can only disguise it’s ugliness for a season. The enemy of our souls is engaged in non-stop attempts to make us think that this world is good and has all that we really need. He would like us to think heaven and eternity are mythical illusions that do not compare with what this world has to offer. But he can only keep this illusion up for short periods of time. Events like Newtown keep reminding us that the world is not all it is cracked up to be.
However, Satan’s deception does not end when tragic events occur. He is also a master of offering solutions based on human philosophy and traditions. He wants us to believe we are good enough to solve our own problems. So man offers his own fixes and then fights about which one is best. Regarding Newtown, some want more guns and others want less. The Enemy could not be happier. Man’s answers are no answers at all. They only result in stumbling around in the darkness, with no clue of what is best.The real answer, the one that the enemy does not want proclaimed, is the gospel of Jesus Christ. This gospel provides hope for now and hope for the future.
The human heart is wicked. Only a new heart offers hope. While earth remains, evil will remain. The gospel alone can provide comfort and hope in this world of sin. But the gospel also points to a new heavens and a new earth, when every tear will be wiped away. Don’t fall into the trap of hiding eternal truth from your children. They need hope just as much as you do. You cannot promise that there will be no more tragedies like Newtown. But you can offer the promise of the gospel which alone offers hope, comfort, and peace.
You see, Solomon got it right. The way of the wicked is like deep darkness. But the path of the righteous is hope shinning like the first gleam of dawn. There is hope for your community!
The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn,
shining ever brighter till the full light of day.
But the way of the wicked is like deep darkness;
they do not know what makes them stumble. Proverbs 4:18-19
One thought on “Hope for a Troubled Community”
Well said!