Even while yesterday’s tragic acts of destruction were going on, and today, while we recoil from the horror of it all, the words of the Psalmist ring out:

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change,
Though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea;
Though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its tumult. (Psalm 46:1-3)

Our God is a BIG God,
More massive than mountains,
More expansive than the sea,
More substantial than towers of steel and glass.

When the huge, impressive structures of nature or civilization tremble and crumble, we have a refuge. God is present, present to help.

When evil does its worst, striking unexpectedly and powerfully, God moves to overtake evil with good. The victory is ultimately the Lord’s.

So it was at the cross. So it will be for those suffering tragedy today, individually and as a people.

God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved;
God will help it when the morning dawns.
The nations are in an uproar, the kingdoms totter;
He utters his voice, the earth melts.
The Lord of hosts is with us, the God of Jacob is our refuge. (Psalm 46:5-7)

We cannot and need not name the good that will come. We must live through the evil and its pain. We need only to rest in our refuge. To hide beneath God’s wings until the fear subsides. To talk with others who know God until the memories are manageable. To entrust ourselves and our loved ones to the God who gives life, even through death.