And I cried

I will never leave you, nor forsake you
Hebrews 13: 5


I sit here listening as officials attempt to explain what happened yesterday on the campus of Virginia Tech. Their words are meant to comfort those who are reeling from the tragic events of yesterday. They are trying to explain their actions; they are trying to justify the steps that they took.

And I sit here and wonder.

I can't help but think of the families of the victims and wonder what they hear when these officials speak. I wonder if these explanations sound empty and cold. There is nothing that a police chief or a president of a university or a secretary of state can say that will allow a mother to hold her child again. That will bring a father home to his children. That will ease the pain of this tremendous loss.

I imgaine that the only comfort these families will eventually find, is comfort in their faith. Faith that tells them their loved one is in the arms of God and that they no longer feel pain. Faith that opens their hearts to healing. Faith that allows tears to fall, with the knowledge that one day it will get better. Faith that God never forsakes us, never leaves us and always has His hand on our hearts.

Yesterday was a bad day for me. I sort of lost myself in the minor tragedies of my own life, but as I was saying my prayers last night, I realized how much I had to be thankful for. I knew that the families of those killed yesterday would give anything to have the minor problems I sulked about all day, instead of the ones of funeral arrangements and burial plots. And I felt a little stupid. And I felt a little selfish. And I felt a lot sad.

And I cried.