Boston Bombings & Explosion in Texas
There were 8 tragedies that occurred during the week of 15 – 21 April 2013. Anyone of the following events would make headline news on days where there were no major tragic events happening in the world.
1. Boston bombings at the finish line of the Boston Marathon athletic event kills three people and causes many injuries.
2. Gun Control Laws fail to move through the United States Senate after the tragedy of the Newtown, Connecticut school shootings that happened in December of 2012.
3. Tainted beef was found in Nebraska. Nebraska is well known for having prime cuts of beef for people that still eat animal products.
4. Major earthquake in Iran measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale causes many deaths and injuries.
5. Major flooding in the Midwest after severe drought the year before.
6. Price of gold drops dramatically causing a large loss for many people that depend on investments in precious metals to have a retirement income.
7. A tragic fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas causes many deaths and injuries.
8. Major earthquake in China measuring 7.0 on the Richter scale causes many deaths and injuries.
I saw people posting messages on Facebook about several of these tragedies last week. My business suffered the rest of the week as I was overwhelmed with sadness.
Just hearing about these events can cause a person to feel sad, worried and depressed. I no longer listen to the news programs or news channels except for the 30 minute Nightly Business Report and the one hour NewsHour program on PBS each evening. I prefer to listen to more hopeful and positive messages while working from my home office!
Friends, The Bible has a message for His People. God wants us to be Happy and not Sad. I am not saying that it is not right to be sad. As a person that has suffered from too much sadness and depression in the past, I can share what is helpful to me to break free from the over exposure to sadness and negative messages people are bombarded with on a daily basis.
I am glad Pastor Sam Geli gave a message straight from the Bible during his sermon on Sabbath, 20 April 2013 at Santa Barbara Seventh-day Adventist Christian church. Here are the highlights of Sam’s message:
God wants us to be Happy. The word ‘happy’ is mentioned 42 times in the Bible.
In the Beatitudes in Matthew 5, the word Blessed comes from the Hebrew word meaning happy.
Matthew 5
1 And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:
3 Blessed are the poor in spirit,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are those who mourn,
For they shall be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek,
For they shall inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
For they shall be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful,
For they shall obtain mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart,
For they shall see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
For they shall be called sons of God.
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.
12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
When we live the Beatitudes, we are painting a picture of Jesus Christ to the people around us!
When King David was sad, he sang songs of Praise. Read Psalms 100 and Psalms 144 in your Bible. David repented and lived out a joyful life serving God and singing praises to God.
Contact me if you want to know some more resources about how to live a joyful Christian life!
Daniel Parsons
You are so right Daniel. Listening and reading about tragedies can be so saddening and painful..you feel for all involved and it can bring up past tragedies we suffer in our own lives. It is best to stay away from the news or when we hear about these sad events to not pass them around and keep focusing on it. We need to stay positive and put out peace, joy and love and the Bible or any other spiritual resource is a good place to start.
Yes Barbara, we all go through trauma, pain and tragedy. Last Wednesday night the man that cares for all the roses, flowers, and orchids at our church property gave us all a devotional message that we need to Look Up and keep our eyes on God and not dwell on all the negative news.