Comfort for those who mourn, The Central Texas Floods

The horrors associated with the flooding in the Texas Hill Country are still being documented at the time of this writing.  Though we weren’t directly impacted, there has been an increasing burden over the situation while we’ve fielded correspondence, from all over the world, asking about both our safety and commenting on the ghastly nature of what has been reported.  While Trina and I’s part time home is outside of the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, a fair portion of my life has been tied to the area affected by the floods.  I grew up in Central Texas, attended Christian Camps in the area, and have engaged in water sports, many times, on The Guadalupe River.  It is difficult for me to imagine such a traumatic occurrence in a place that was marked by great joy during my formative years.

My first instinct after hearing about the tragedies was to try and do something to fix it.  My ungoverned soul wanted to take action, feeling like doing anything seemed better than just watching things unfold!  Because Trina and I look at the world from a spirit first paradigm, it became clear that even a well intended, knee jerk reaction wouldn’t accomplish much.  Trina was more calm than I was and her poise resulted in us both praying as a first response.  Over the course of several days, we’ve done our best to listen to The Lord and to other leaders that we trust.  While there has been a lot of spiritual insight on what has occurred, our perspective is that now isn’t the time to address the spiritual causes involved.

I was given an exact Bible reference to a passage that helps to frame the experience of the families and friends of the victims of the floods:

Job 2:6-13 NASB95

So the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your power, only spare his life.” [7] Then Satan went out from the presence of the LORD and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. [8] And he took a potsherd to scrape himself while he was sitting among the ashes. [9] Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die!” [10] But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips. [11] Now when Job’s three friends heard of all this adversity that had come upon him, they came each one from his own place, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite; and they made an appointment together to come to sympathize with him and comfort him. [12] When they lifted up their eyes at a distance and did not recognize him, they raised their voices and wept. And each of them tore his robe and they threw dust over their heads toward the sky. [13] Then they sat down on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights with no one speaking a word to him, for they saw that his pain was very great.

Job’s suffering, including the loss of children, was about as bad as it gets. Even his friends, who would later be rebuked by The Lord for their sanctimonious, insensitive speech (see Job 42:7-9), knew that his trauma and distress called for something different than an immediate lesson on self correction and improvement.  He was crushed with blinding, emotional pain, just like so many are in Texas over the loss of their loved ones.  Trauma like what we witness in both of these cases should make us very careful to apprehend the heart of Father God before we say anything.  It is His caring and healing nature that must be on display now through His people.

Comforting those who mourn

Jesus, as He always does, gave us the pattern for situations like the ones we’ve been describing.  His ministry is described in Isaiah 61:1-2 NASB95:

The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, Because the LORD has anointed me To bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to captives And freedom to prisoners; [2] To proclaim the favorable year of the LORD And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn,

Scripture also tells us that we are to pattern our ministry after the one we see Him engaged in during His time on earth:

1 John 4:17 NASB95

By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world.

Hebrews 13:8 NASB95

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

Lets be sure that we understand that comforting those that mourn is not the exclusive right of a privileged few.  It is also true that real comfort, the kind that binds broken hearts, is only possible when we are yielded and sensitive to The Comforter, The Holy Spirit (see John 14:26).  Spending time with The Lord and listening to The Holy Spirit is a primary calling for every Christian.  Knowing how He speaks to you is the primary qualifier that enables us to effectively respond in situations like the recent tragedy.  You may not be called primarily to a pastoral, healing ministry, but the chances are very great that you will be called to represent His Comfort in another situation where you have a direct relationship or connection.  Because there is also no set action or list of steps that will make our efforts truly impacting, we must double down on our intimacy with God.  He is the comforter and we’ll represent Him when we stay close.  

There will be a time to learn about the spiritual roots of this situation, now is the time to provide  solace for those who have recently experienced unimaginable loss and suffering.  Wait on The Lord and ask Him how you can pass along a word of solace to those affected.  Ask Him for the prayers over the families that will bring peace and healing that can only come from the God of all comfort.