7 Days Later

A lot can happen in a week.

The more I think about Boston, the more grateful and more broken hearted I feel. 

I'm deeply thankful my little sister and friends living in Boston were all kept safe and sound. But my heart aches as I read about the stories of those who were not. I'm humbled and grateful to live in a country where sudden bombings are so rare, it only takes minutes to receive news of what's happening 3000 miles from my front door. But I can't help but think of those around the world who have grown accustomed to sudden explosions and loved ones being in danger, and my heart aches for them too. I'm moved as I look through photographs of the brave who ran towards to the explosions, towards the chaos, towards the panic, towards the pain. My heart sinks when I learn the remaining surviving suspect is only 19 years old.19. While his age makes his acts no less evil, we all know something is terribly wrong when someone so young has such darkness inside. I'm inspired by the unity among the Boston community and the overflow we've felt nationwide. And like everyone else, I'm still really sad.

Events like this rattle us to the core, as they should. This week has been a fresh reminder good and bad coexist around us every day. We live in a world waiting to be redeemed by its Creator, and in the meantime, we have a part to play. When the bad is so devastating, so prominent, so dark, the good must rise above to be even stronger, even louder, even brighter. God actually designed us capable of overcoming evil with good, although if you're like me, it's often easier to avoid it than confront it. Or at best dwell on one reaction and not the other: either being thankful, licking our wounds, and moving on, or growing more cynical, living in fear, and perpetuating a cycle. But perhaps the most compelling reason to engage the conflict in our world, for that matter, even the conflict in our own lives, happens when we allow ourselves to hold onto to both. To simultaneously rejoice with the good and grieve for the bad. Maybe the tension will push us all forward.