We must not allow fear to paralyze us from enjoying life following the Boston Marathon tragedies

Joshua 1:9
9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lordyour God is with you wherever you go.”



It was suppose to have been a beautiful day in Boston where the most fame running event of all time would reveal the fastest runner among the thousands from around the world.  It is an annual tradition in Boston where families take the day off to celebrate this event.

Then the unthinkable happens when two packages of highly explosive devices detonated a block from each other sending metal debris into the bodies, hands, feet of the innocent bystanders.  It was to have been a day of honoring the victims of the Sandy Hook tragedies with a commemorative banner set at mile 26.  I can only imagine the pain of many of these families who lived through one tragedy watching and feeling the tragedy as they stood at the mile 26 watching these runners cross the finish line. There were 3 victims who died, including a child when these bombs blew up.

When tragedy repeats itself it is very easy to relive the previous tragedy. My own memory traveled back to the August 2007 when the Mississippi river bridge collapse sending people trapped in their cars into the river.  This event happened a little more than a month after our own  personal tragedy of losing our 10 year old daughter the first night home from the hospital.  Like many of the families in the Sandy Hook and the Boston marathon tragedies we asked 'why' because it is all we can say when tragedy happens to us.

 For many months and even years our family relived the horrific memories of that night when the emergency response team did all they could, but they could not bring her back.  The families in the Sandy Hook tragedy experience and continue to experience reliving their own memories. Night time when their bodies want to sleep become the hardest time for them as nightmares and emotional triggers reoccur like a one act play night after night.

When tragedy happens to us the natural response to it is to run away from it.  We try to annesthesize our pain by burying it down with busyness, drugs, alcohol, gambling or other kind of addictive pleasure.  We do everything but talk about our pain.  Talking, not busyness, leads to our true healing of our souls and helps us resolve the post traumatic pain we feel from such a tragedy.  If we can learn to talk about our personal pain with a trusted friend whenever a tragedy occurs we will be emotionally healthier people. I learned that in my own grief journey just as many others have learned in their own.

When the dust settles and things return to normal we must not live in fear and avoid those things that make life worth living. We must send a message to those people responsible for causing this pain that we will not be defeated and their evil intent to do harm will not keep us from enjoying life in the greatest nation on earth.