By Janine
Ridings
In the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, people are desperately searching for ways to cope with the horrific tragedy. We have all experienced a variety of emotions including feelings such as fear, anger, sadness, and anxiety. In addition, many people have experienced physical symptoms from emotional stress including things like headaches, stomach aches, and fatigue. Those of us with MCS or other chronic illnesses may have been affected even more so physically than a healthy person. The normal symptoms we experience in our day to day lives may have been exacerbated due to the trauma of the incidents we witnessed on television.
I have observed people reacting to the tragedy in a myriad of ways. People have different coping mechanisms as they seek to make some sense out of the tragedy, and as they seek to help in any way they can. Some people have donated blood to help the victims of the tragedy, others have donated money to charities, and some have been on their knees in prayer, praying for the victims of the tragedy and our country. Some people have been incapacitated by fear, and only leave their homes if they absolutely have to. Others have cancelled flight plans or vacations that had been scheduled prior to the attacks. Many are rushing out to buy books on end times prophecies of various types, and others are stocking up on gas masks. Many are questioning why this tragedy happened, and some are speculating as to who is to blame.
I have also seen differences in how people grieve. Some people have remained calm in the midst of their grief and sadness and have been able to carry on with their lives. Others are still physically shaken and tearful much of the time. With all of our different backgrounds and personalities, it is okay that we all respond differently. Some are experiencing symptoms of post traumatic stress syndrome such as nightmares and irrational fears. For myself personally, the first couple days after the tragedy I experienced migraines and fatigue. The rest of the week I felt an emotional exhaustion from the grief and sadness of the whole situation. In addition, I found myself being forgetful, distracted and clumsy, as well as having irrational thoughts and an occasional nightmare.
As Christians, how can we find hope and peace in the coming days? How do we face the fact that our sense of security and safety feels as though it has been stripped from us? Does God want us to live our lives in fear? Where do we go from here? I would like to discuss some scriptural principles that might be helpful to us during these difficult days, along with some coping strategies that have helped me.
First and foremost, we need to find comfort from God. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 says:
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.”
We need to pray for God’s peace to sustain us during these trying days. He alone can give us true and lasting peace during times of difficulty and tragedy. Isaiah 26:3-4 says,
“You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord, is the Rock eternal.”
As we receive God’s comfort and peace, we in turn can comfort those around us. It is helpful and healing to reach out to friends and family during this time and ask how they are doing. Seek to reach out to others, and in turn you will be blessed.
Second, when fear and anxiety come, we need to give these emotions to the Lord. One of my favorite scripture passages is found in Psalm 112:6-8:
“Surely he will never be shaken; a righteous man will be remembered forever. He will have no fear of bad news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord. His heart is secure, he will have no fear: in the end he will look in triumph on his foes.”
Many of us will
experience fears in the coming days, but as we get fearful, we need to cling to
scriptures like the one above. I
suggest writing a scripture like the one above on a note card and displaying it
somewhere in the house where you can reference it when fears come—maybe on a
desk or kitchen counter. I
don’t believe God wants us to live our lives in fear and trembling of what
tragedy might happen next. All
throughout the Bible we see God commanding us not to be fearful. Isaiah 41:10 says,
“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
Right before
Joshua was about to lead the Israelites to invade Canaan, God gave him these
encouraging words:
“Be
strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I
swore to their forefathers to give them. Be
strong and very courageous. Be
careful to obey all the laws my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to
the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go.”
Joshua 1:6-7
Throughout
history men have faced wars and battles of various kinds.
As Americans in this generation we have been pretty immune from wars
occurring on our own soil. That has
now changed, and we face the distinct possibility that in the future there may
be further terrorist attacks. Those
of us with MCS are particularly concerned about chemical and biological warfare
being used against us, because many of us have experienced firsthand the horrors
of what chemicals can do to damage our bodies. However, even though these possibilities exist, we need not live our
lives in fear. Fear won’t
accomplish anything positive. If
there are ways we as individuals and as a nation can protect ourselves, then we
need to take whatever measures we can to be prudent during these times. Beyond that, however, we need to have a spirit of courage and we need to
pray for God’s protection. He is
the only one who can ultimately protect us. Psalm 91:1-2, 4-6 says,
“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress. My God, in whom I trust’…He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday.”
What has helped
me this past week is facing my worst possible fear—the fear of an attack in
the Seattle area that would kill me. When
we face our worst possible fears, our faith is really put to the test.
Do we really believe we will go to heaven when we die?
Are we confident of our eternal hope?
Do we really believe Ecclesiastes 7:1 which says,
“A
good name is better than fine perfume, and the day of death better than the day
of birth.”
If we truly
have put our hope in God and trust what He says, then we don’t need to be
terrified of death. There are so
many ways we all could potentially die. We could die in a car accident, from a life threatening illness, etc. Just as we need not live in fear of those type of
things happening to us, so also we should not sit around worrying about
dying in a war or a terrorist attack.
We all have an innate will to live, but if we have an eternal
perspective, then we will be prepared to face death if God should call us home. The apostle Paul had the proper perspective as he said in Philippians
1:21:
“For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”
In the days ahead, we need to continue to trust God with our lives, knowing that nothing can happen to us that He does not allow. Isaiah 46:4 says,
“Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.”
God knows the day of our birth, and He alone knows the day we will die. We need to trust that He is in control and all powerful. We need to trust in the fact that we will not die until it is God’s time for us to go.
Many of us with MCS have endured great tragedies and losses in our lives—many of us have lost careers, been displaced from homes, and had our health shattered. Because of what we have been through in our lives, I feel we have a bit of an advantage compared to those who have not faced great adversity in their lives. You and I have been through a lot and survived. We have learned coping skills that have helped us persevere through hard times. I would like to encourage all of you to call on those skills during the coming days as we face an uncertain future in our nation. A few things that have helped me cope this past week are listening to praise music and allowing myself to praise God even in difficult times (not praising God for the tragedy, but praising Him for who He is), reading the Psalms and clinging to God’s Word, praying for the safety of our country, spending time with my pets, bringing in fresh cut flowers from my garden as a symbol of hope for the future, and calling or e-mailing friends and relatives. I have also found it helpful to stick to my normal routine as much as possible.
Finding meaning in the midst of the tragedy can help heal our hurting hearts. I’m sure many of us have been examining our lives and our priorities this past week. Many of us are trying to show more love to those we care about. For myself, I am trying to be less serious about life and enjoy it more. I am trying to be thankful for each day that the Lord gives me and not take life for granted. I’m trying to look at each day and each moment as a special gift from God. Yesterday I played catch and Frisbee with my son. I hope I can continue to take more time out to just play and enjoy the small pleasures in life.
Seeing the nation draw together this past week has been a healing thing for many of us. To see many people become so patriotic has been a powerful and exciting thing to watch. As I watched the Mariners game the other night, all the team members had flags sewn on their uniforms. In addition, all the spectators who came to the game that night were given flags when they entered the stadium. Instead of the usual “Take Me Out to the Ballpark” song, a local choir was asked to sing “God Bless America.” At the end of the game, after winning the A.L. West title, the Mariners all went out onto the field and had their chaplain lead them in a prayer. To watch not only all the patriotism, but also the open display of public prayer was very moving to me. It showed me that some good is already beginning to come out of the horrible tragedy.
The coming months will be a sobering time for our nation as we face military intervention in seeking to thwart terrorism. I’m sure each of us will have some hard days ahead as well as some that are easier. We need to be able to move ahead with our lives in our own timing, and not feel guilty for enjoying life. We must not let the tragedy or fear of the future paralyze us. To do so would be to allow the terrorists to accomplish their objective behind the attack which was to terrorize us. We also need not minimize our problems because of the tragedy. God still cares about all our concerns. The most important thing we can do right now is to continue to put our faith, hope, and trust in God, believing that the sovereign God of the universe is capable of watching over us. We need to place our lives in His care and continue to pray for the safety of this nation. I love Deuteronomy 33:27 which says:
“The
eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.”
That is the safest place for us to be right now—in the arms of our loving Father. May we all rest in Him in the days to come as we face the future one day at a time.