Today we read the story of the Exodus at the Red Sea where Moses stretches out his hand and the waters are parted overnight. The people pass on dry ground and Pharaohs army is lost (Exodus 14:21-31). The saving hand of God intervened to bring the Hebrew people across and to rid them of the hand of the oppressor, the ones who abused them.
As we look throughout our turbulent world it may become easy to say that one people are saved by the hand of God and others are not because of and then list your worst sin here. The trouble is we don't really fully struggle with the question of theodicy or why does an all loving, all powerful God not save everyone. Some of this is our own choices, some things are brought on by nature, and still others are out of the realm of one persons control.
I certainly don't think this way of my brothers and sisters in South Sudan as we hear more reports of conflict in the northern part of the country. I pray everyday for their safety and for the conflict not to spread southward. I don't believe they are being punished by God, they have known too many years of war, how to sow the seeds of peace is a struggle and takes time. I know also for me the saving hand of God was known most significantly when I almost died at the hands of my abuser, my ex-husband from years ago. Because even though I almost died I knew deeply the healing power of God's love in my life. This is was when I was most vulnerable and open to God in my life.
This is what I have seen over and over again in discussions with people. When we are broken open and at our most vulnerable we turn to the saving hand of God. We seem to know we are powerless and need something or someone to ground us. God is most present to us at these junctures if we remain open to it. The hard thing is to carry it on into the wilderness with us. We have to return again to the brokenness that healed us in order to see this. Can we remain broken open to the hand of God in our lives?
As we look throughout our turbulent world it may become easy to say that one people are saved by the hand of God and others are not because of and then list your worst sin here. The trouble is we don't really fully struggle with the question of theodicy or why does an all loving, all powerful God not save everyone. Some of this is our own choices, some things are brought on by nature, and still others are out of the realm of one persons control.
I certainly don't think this way of my brothers and sisters in South Sudan as we hear more reports of conflict in the northern part of the country. I pray everyday for their safety and for the conflict not to spread southward. I don't believe they are being punished by God, they have known too many years of war, how to sow the seeds of peace is a struggle and takes time. I know also for me the saving hand of God was known most significantly when I almost died at the hands of my abuser, my ex-husband from years ago. Because even though I almost died I knew deeply the healing power of God's love in my life. This is was when I was most vulnerable and open to God in my life.
This is what I have seen over and over again in discussions with people. When we are broken open and at our most vulnerable we turn to the saving hand of God. We seem to know we are powerless and need something or someone to ground us. God is most present to us at these junctures if we remain open to it. The hard thing is to carry it on into the wilderness with us. We have to return again to the brokenness that healed us in order to see this. Can we remain broken open to the hand of God in our lives?
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