God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging…
Be still and know that I am God.
Psalm 46:1-3, 10 NIV
We were all horrified when we woke up Thursday morning to hear of the tragic accident at Ronald Reagan Airport involving a crash between an American Airlines regional aircraft and a U.S. Army Blackhawk helicopter. As I am writing this, no survivors among the 64 on the aircraft or the 3 aboard the helicopter have been found.
It is so tragic because we just assume these days that when we board a plane, which we all do, some of us frequently - that it will get us there safely. Many of us have wandered the terminal of that airport, without any trepidation other than trying to get to our gate on time. Plane crashes, especially aboard commercial aircraft, are so rare these days. The last one was 16 years ago.
One never knows when tragedy will strike. That is what makes life so fragile. Our hearts go out to the families of those who perished in the crash. As well as our prayers. We cannot imagine what they are going through. It’s sobering to think about.
The question that is on everyone’s mind today is “why?” And why did it have to happen to those on these two aircraft? I heard on one of the news reports that Russian and American figure skaters were on the plane. Those who have trained and sacrificed years to hone their abilities. Now all gone in an instant. We may eventually find out what caused that crash. But it may not give much comfort to those who have lost loved ones.
The question that remains is “Why?” Why do things like this happen that take away the lives of innocent people? The “Why” question is something we ask a lot in life, not just in times of death, but in times of challenges; physical, emotional, spiritual, or challenges that cause us pain. In our families. In our work environment. In our churches. In our world.
A study of the book of Job that I remember, had this simple statement, “We don’t know why, but we do know who.” There are many mysteries in life for which we do not know the reason for their happening.
We don’t know why God allows such tragedies. But we do know who God is, what God is like. We know that God cares for us when we are hurting, we know that God is with us when we are suffering. When life does not make sense. Looking at the passage from Psalm 46, we are assured that we may not know why, but we do know who.
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