I was in the middle of a math lesson yesterday when I heard the news… terror had struck the Boston Marathon.

Heartsick, I stopped school. We sat in silence, watching. Waiting.

Like you, I’ve learned it can be real now.

I remember well September 11, 2001.  I was in bed with my infant son when the news broke. We turned on the TV, just in time to see the second plane hit the World Trade Center.  At first, we could not believe what was happening in front of us–and then, the reality began to sink in.

It.Was.Real.

There really is evil in this world.

So much heartache. So much grief. So much pain.

How do we even begin to comprehend this kind of suffering?

We don’t. That’s all.

Grief is it’s own master. It comes and goes at will. Like many of you, I’ve learned that grief washes over a sorrowing person like waves on the seashore…

Remember when daddy used to swing with us?
Remember those stories mama read?
Remember how very tiny she was?  So. Tiny. I loved her.

For me, 9/11 was a time of innocence lost. A reminder that we truly never know what tomorrow will bring.

In this world, we need an anchor. An anchor for the soul. I loved this from Max Lucado:

On 9/11 we turned to the sturdiest anchor of all: God. Only He promises to secure our most precious commodity—our souls. When God breathed into Adam, he gave him more than oxygen; he gave him an eternal essence. He gave you the same. Because of your soul, you wrestle with right and wrong, value the lives of others and get choked up at the singing of our national anthem. The soul is that part of you dares to believe that good comes out of evil, Right still sits on the throne and the next life will make sense of this one.

The older I get, the more I realize just how little is within my control.

Last night, I was talking with a friend about the pain of a miscarriage my husband and I suffered many years ago. Sometimes, we just don’t understand. Sometimes, life just hurts. Sometimes, the “whys” of this life can be overwhelming.

But even when life hurts, we can trust . The Bible teaches us that we can run to God when life hurts.  “God is our refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1).

God never promised us a world without suffering. But He did promise that in the midst of sorrow, when life hurts, He would be there.

When life hurts, we can run to Him.

In the midnight hours, when the questions arise that are beyond comprehension, we can read His words:

He promised never to leave us (Matthew 28:20). He said, “For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them” (Matthew 18:20). He is “a friend who sticks closer than a brother” (Proverbs 18:24). We’re assured that “the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer” (1 Peter 3:12).

You can run to Him too, busy mom. He hears. He’s present.

Even when life hurts.