The Little Ones

From the Connecticut elementary school children who suffered through the trauma of having a shooter enter their school, to the tragedy of yesterday's tornado in Moore, OK that hit squarely on one of the elementary schools, so many kids have been forced to deal with awful things.

The aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombings also includes what a lot of kids went through.  And add to that the children who come from homes that are full of violent talk and maybe actions.

The last thing any of us would want is for children to become jaded about life -- always believing the worst as they move forward.  But that is what can happen, that and other things like deep-seated fears that govern their daily decisions. 

Each time children at a school experience some sort of tragedy, they always say that counselors will be available.  Of course, the sooner that a child gets help after something traumatic, the better they will do, but down the road maybe we need to come up with different ways of handling these things.   For one thing, we are allowing the children to decide who needs to see a counselor in a lot of instances, and maybe some of the children who need a counselor most don't even go.  Take a group of 40 children who are exposed to something horrific.  The range in effect might be very, very different in this group -- from some of the children who seem to deal with it very well to others who suffer for a long time afterwards and maybe never recover fully.

It all goes back to the human brain again.  What do we really know about how the brain processes tragedy?  Do children who have a faith base do better in dealing with events like yesterday's tornado?  Do they have a better sense of security than other children without a faith base?  I don't know.  But they are certainly interesting questions, aren't they? 

What we give our children by bringing them up in a faith-based home is not measurable, but it is the one special gift that costs nothing and gives everything.  By bringing Jesus into our homes, we open our children to the unconditional love and care that only our God can give, not lessened in any way by human failure or nature's fury.

The Governor of Oklahoma asked for prayers, and I think we should honor her request.  Pray for the people of Moore who are dealing with all kinds of loss.  Pray for the rescuers who are going forward looking for survivors and the dead.  Pray for the emergency service workers who probably haven't had any sleep.  Pray that this community can heal, and that the little ones can still sleep at night unencumbered by their fears.

Today in Texas and parts east, conditions are ripe again for tornadoes.  Let us also pray that these people are ready to face what comes, and that they remain strong.