God is there....

My 9 year old daughter was full of questions last night.  'Why did the earthquake happen?'  'How will those people get help?'  'Why do bad things happen?'  'It makes me sad.'

As much as we want to shelter our children from experiencing the "heaviness of life," that is an impossibility. The tragic earthquake in Haiti, reminds us of that. Sooner or later, every child will experience a grief situation in his or her life, whether that is losing a pet, a best friend moving away, the death of a grandparent, or other loss. Additionally, with the evening news bringing "play by play" of the devastation of Haiti's crowded cities, fear can also enter in. The current happenings in the world come to us graphically and instantaneously. As church friends of children and as parents and/or grandparents, we must be alert and aware of how individual children may be affected by these life experiences.

• Be prepared to listen, really listen with your heart as well as with your head.
• Reassure the child of God's presence. Be careful to be real with any promises. Children are not comforted by something they know to be false.
• Let children talk as much as they would like without judgment on your part.
• Answer honestly and as completely as appropriate for the age. It is okay to say "I don't know, but (add a statement of reassurance of what you do know)."
• Limit TV exposure.
• The younger the child, the less graphic and detailed your explanations should be.

                                 (Update and adapted from Winter 2001 issue of Information: Children's Ministries)

I remind myself, that when 'bad things' happen, God loves us and grieves with us in our sadness. God is in the hands and feet of those who rush to aid the broken. God is in the middle of the suffering, suffering with those who are in pain.  God is in the rejoice of a small miracle that brings hope.