Editorial

Tragedy, it seems, can become almost routine.

The nation watched in horror as the space shuttle Columbia hurtled to the earth, the latest in a series of nationally broadcast disasters. Tragedies, on a much smaller scale, happen every day, apart from the glare of the cameras. Someone says goodbye at the grave of a loved one. Another closes the door for the last time on a failed business. Someone else hears the doctor’s diagnosis: yes, it is cancer.

It takes the unexpected explosion of a tried and true spacecraft on Feb. 1, or the evil plans of terrorists against the most powerful nation in the world on Sept. 11, 2001, to remind some of us of the fragility of life and the pain that is sometimes associated with this life. This reminder is perhaps uniquely needed for those of us who live in the prosperous and pampered west. For many people across the globe, famine, disease, persecution and untimely death are common features of their lives.

When tragedy strikes, the best comfort is found in the biblical truth that God is in control–both of the trials of today, and our eternal destiny.

The events of Feb. 1 and Sept. 11, as well as the "routine" tragedies that strike every day, are not a surprise to our Sovereign God. That He is exercising His providential care even in the midst of great tragedy is really the only way to make sense of the world and this life.

The truth that God is in control and that He, in fact, is the central player in all of human history is written across every page of the Holy Scriptures. Starting "In the beginning..." in Genesis with His personal agency in the creation of mankind and the universe and culminating in Revelation with His prophesied orchestration of the last days of this age, God is indeed in control.

Perhaps the most vivid example of God’s providence in the life of a human being is found in the biblical account of Job. Asking Satan whether he had "considered My servant Job" (1:8; 2:3), God offers this man of great prosperity and integrity to Satan for testing.

Throughout his extraordinary ordeal–which included the loss of all his children as well as his great wealth–Job understands that God is completely in control. Early on he rejects his wife’s counsel to "Curse God and die!" (2:9), by answering, "Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?" (2:10). And, at the end of the testing, after being reminded by God of His sovereign control of His creation, Job declares, "I know that You can do all things, and that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted" (42:2).

In your darkest moments when life seems to be crashing in all around you, take a few minutes and read God’s answer to Job recorded in chapters 38-41. In this majestic poetry, we are told of God’s absolute control of all of His creation. This passage brings to mind Jesus’ teaching in the Sermon on the Mount about God’s providential care for the "birds of the air" and the "lilies of the field"–and His even greater concern for human beings (Matt. 6:25-34).

In his eloquent message to the nation Feb. 1, President Bush touted God’s providential care and touched on our future hope: "In the skies today we saw destruction and tragedy. Yet farther than we can see there is comfort and hope. In the words of the prophet Isaiah, ‘Lift your eyes and look to the heavens. Who created all these? He who brings out the starry hosts one by one and calls them each by name. Because of His great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.’

"The same Creator who names the stars also knows the names of the seven souls we mourn today. The crew of the shuttle Columbia did not return safely to Earth; yet we can pray that all are safely home."

In the midst of bad advice from his three friends, Job also saw this future hope: "As for me, I know my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will take His stand on the earth" (19:25).

The Apostle Paul tells us that the hope of resurrection is assured for those of us who are in Jesus Christ because of the historical fact (1 Cor. 15:3-8) of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead: "But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep" (15:20). Paul further declares: "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ" (15:55-57).

Indeed, tragedy is routine. Someone close to you–a family member, a neighbor, a colleague–may be hurting and in need of the ministry you can provide. When tragedy strikes, let us take confidence in God’s providential care and point to our future hope in Jesus Christ.

For related coverage, see Columbia: Tragedy in the Skies Archive