What shall we do in times of grief and
trouble?
Two dear friends of this Meeting have died within the past
several weeks. Others in our circle have
serious health problems and other travails. There are many daunting, complex troubles in
our communities, our nation and our world, with no clear let alone swift
solutions. There are refugees by the
hundreds of thousands; vast areas of poverty and hunger; and violent conflicts,
including between deeply religious people, going on for decades, generations, even
centuries.
My favorite Farside cartoon, by Gary Larson, depicts a man
in hell, flames all around, jauntily pushing a wheelbarrow - and whistling. One onlooking demon says to another, “We’re
just not getting to that guy.”
When grace cannot be seen, what we still have is a choice:
shall we keep and focus on our confidence in grace, or shall we succumb to despair
in its apparent absence?
What shall we do in times of grief and
trouble?
Do not give up.
Look for grace wherever it can be found.
And
strive to represent grace to others.
