Rocked by Tragedy, our Global Family Grieves

Blog entries, emails, and skype calls confirm a deep and dark tragedy that unfolded at the end of last week. In Denver, my home town at the YWAM base, 2 DTS staff were shot and killed on base 2 others injured, then the shooter appeared later at a Colorado Springs Church, New Life, opens fire, and kills two more before being injured by a security guard eventually taking his own life.
What do we say to something like this? Please stop reading now and just think about it… I sit and watch my cursor blinking, waiting for an answer, but I have none.
There are no words that can express the sadness that I feel for the families of all involved. I was speaking with my mother around the time the second shooting occurred, still getting impressions from the first ones late Sunday night (9:30pm was 12:30pm Denver). Then next morning, with more news the track students and staff got together to worship and pray. We stood on the rooftop, the sun shining through the crisp air. We raised our voices to the sky and the warm vapors of our life went with them made visible by the brisk winter around us.

I couldn’t sing, I couldn’t speak… I could only cry. I wept… I wept for Denver, I wept for the United States, I wept for the world, and I wept for the lost. My face grimaced in sorrow as I hid it from the group tears flowing freely. I could feel my heart physically stressed as if someone had its hands around it squeezing the life out of it. I acknowledged this pain, but at the same time heard God whispering, with sadness in His voice, “Now you know a little bit about my heart and what I feel.” I instantly thought of the Cross and the fact that Jesus died from a broken heart. From then on I kept weeping, but something was different. I wept out of grief, yes, but I also wept simply because I was overwhelmed by the Love of the Father for Denver, the United States, and the world.

He wants you to be His child. He died for you so that you could be His. You don’t have to do anything to get His love; He loved you before you were born. You can’t do anything to get His love, it’s free. Just like there is nothing you can do to get God’s love, there is nothing that you can do to get rid of it either; it’s always there, He’s always there. He asks us, those who follow Him to show His love to others, to carry His love to the far-reaching corners of the world no matter what the cost.

Love… is it easy to love? Is it easy to stare into the eyes of an adorable child, so innocent, blameless, and dependent? Is it easy to stare into the eyes of someone who sells children to the international sex-trade? It may be easy to love the innocent, but what about the guilty?

Will we love that way? Will we respond to the call to love? It will take everything that you have. But what is really yours in the first place? Every gift is from God and all that we have in this world will pass away. Love in a way that is inclusive, drastic, and even reckless. Love brought Jesus to earth and to the cross, but it didn’t leave Him there; His resurrection bringing Hope to humanity. Tragedy makes us want to cry out for, “Jesus come soon, don’t wait.” But until he does, we know that there are so many that haven’t experienced his love and know that His heart breaks for them too.

What happened last weekend is a dreadful tragedy and we should weep for our family; the body of Christ. Please keep the families in your prayers as well as the staff and students of the DTS and YWAM base in Denver especially.

In Turkey, we are all pretty sick. We were able to host a Photography Exhibition in the city square and named it “Exposing Beauty”. It was a terrific even and some relationships were made with some people who are open for the Gospel. Praise Him! We are all heading our different directions this coming week for Christmas break. Pray that we will all be well and that our travels will be blessed as well as the two weeks we are apart.

I included some of my needs on the right hand column. It is great being here, but there is a cost that comes with it.
I want to thank my monthly supporters for their obedience to God. This is a team effort and as much their heart as it is mine. I honestly wouldn’t be here if they hadn’t responded to His call and vision for His world. It is a beautiful partnership that God has put together. I honor you for your faithfulness.