Nashville: Where is your hope?

Nashville.
The music city.
Some see it as the promised land, others the city of broken dreams. This city is the melting pot for every dreamer, hopeful, and wishful thinker. Musicians and businessmen alike ventured into this city to make it big - and many have.

But these days, Nashville is singing a new tune. Watch the news and you no longer see concerts at riverside, street musicians playing for a few bucks, or celebrities walking through their favorite coffee shops.

The images show you a city of devastation.

Of heartbreak.

Of grieving.

Of loss.

But in the midst of all this chaos, many of us can hear that still small voice, whispering peace and love to all those in need of comfort.

"Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."
-John 14:27-

Let not your heart be troubled.


I have never been in the midst of a natural disaster. I, like many of you, have sat at home watching floods, tornadoes and hurricanes devastate different areas of the world and been in disbelief. Shock, awe, and confusion have gripped me during news reports and I often wonder how God could have let any disaster happen. But now, here I sit in the midst of it all, feeling it touch far too close to home.

I never question God's sovereignty, but after this weekend I have questioned His protection.

It's hard to walk through the wreckage without asking some major questions. Why that particular house when the rest of the street was untouched? Why was an entire interstate washed away during a heavy traffic flow? Why were the homeless flooded out? Those with little children now without clothes, a roof over their head, or food to feed their kids? What about the missing?

And then, I asked, why them... and not me?

A friend of mine told me that I was blessed and that it was undeniable God was protecting me. I cringe at that thought. If God was protecting me, does that mean He wasn't protecting the Williams? or the Smiths? What about the Jenkins? and the Banters? Claiming supernatural protection on my life in this particular situation in some way insinuates that He chose to protect me and not someone else.

And I refuse to accept that.

Now, I'm no Biblical scholar, and many might disagree with me, but my "being blessed" has nothing to do with whether or not the storm flooded me out, destroyed my belongings, or took my life. Since when is God's blessing on my life defined by purely physical things? Isn't God's love for me and His promises to be with me blessing enough?

Those who were wrecked and ravaged in this disaster remain blessed - and I pray they come to see that. Regardless of possessions, though it might not look like it, God's blessing is reigning down on their lives. It might be manifested differently than before, but hasn't gone anywhere.

Pete Wilson, my pastor at Crosspoint, once said:

"God is more concerned about your character than with your comfort."

God allowed Job to suffer and lose all he had in order to bring Him glory.
He let Lazarus die so that His disciples would "see and believe." (John 11:15)
And He's going to use Nashville's suffering to bring light into this world.

"God will allow suffering, pain and crisis in order to detach our Hope from other things and attach it to Himself."

-Pete Wilson-

So, Nashville, where is your hope?