Thanksgiving for Tragedy
In ALL things give thanks.
I hope you’ll have a joyous Thanksgiving! I don’t actually give thanks for tragedy, per se, but I am aware that without the highs and lows of life, our existence would be a stale, sanitary monotony.
We all suffer. Some of us experience more tragedy than others. Many of our readers have suffered child sexual abuse and others have survived human trafficking, even sex trafficking. You may or may not grasp the magnitude of that kind of core violation. Rape is a core violation. It is a tragic assault on body and soul. Our very identity has been attacked.
Too many succumb to the tragedy of abuse, perpetuating and expanding its power on earth. There are also people who turn all kinds of tragedy into thanksgiving and blessing. You don’t have to have suffered abuse to warn against it, but for those who have, our voices are powerful. We come against the evil with a strength and valiant spirit that astonishes bystanders. Our power is from Holy Spirit.
The cause of tragedy…
Satan, the enemy of our souls, the destroyer, the liar, the thief, and murderer is constantly prowling the earth seeking whom he may devour. It is because God loves us soooo much that the devil hates us. The Creator of the universe loves you so much that He left the realm of heaven to live here on earth in an earthly body for 33 years. At full maturity he began preaching and teaching, performing miracles and demonstrating the essence of the Father. He then, suffered and died to become sin for us so that we can live in peace and joy forever. Forever, not just here, but we shall pass into the heavenly realm to be with Him.
That’s why we can give thanks, not for the actual tragedy, but for the ability to look at it as a propellant to activate goodness in the world. Our experiences have made us into the people we are.
Tragedy can strike anyone.
Jennifer Christie was viscously raped while on a business trip. He surely wanted her dead. When they found his body, he was a match for numerous fatal rape attacks. Jenn wasn’t the first or the last, but she lives to tell, not about the tragedy, as much as, the power of Love to get through such a trauma. She suffers still, but she has a hope that passes all understanding. Check out her page at Savethe1.com
Other friends, Dan and Lisa Itse, were traumatized by the tragic circumstances around their fifth child’s birth. After a normal pregnancy, their son was born blue and not breathing. The doctors pressured them to not feed and care for their son. They were told that he would live two weeks at most, so they valiantly took him home and cared for him with every bit of strength they had for 23 years. He passed just last week. His parents have never faltered in their faithful care, because the power of Love sustained them.
Toni got pregnant at 18, an abortion was forcibly done to her. The trauma she suffered lingered and caused horrific pain, but it did not destroy her. She is an amazing tower of strength. Her testimony brings hope to literally thousands of people. Shame and guilt cannot keep any child of God from abounding in Love -full of joy.
Suffering is part of life.
Tragedy touches everyone, but those who know God are able to give thanks, even in the midst of the circumstances, because they know that all things will ultimately work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose.
The marvelous thing is what that purpose is. The purpose for each of us starts with loving God and loving people. We were created to love one another.
If every effort we put forth was from a place of love -carefully considering what would be the best, most loving way to do whatever it is we do for those in our sphere of influence, there would be no abuse, no trafficking, no murder. I pray love prevails as people go about their daily tasks.
Of course, there is still grief. Grief must be processed, but it need not destroy or delay our purpose. I have had my share of grief too. It’s painful and recurrent. That is natural. Loving and fulfilling the hope and the future that God plans for us is supernatural.
Happy Thanksgiving!