Living Through The Unexpected

In 2003, this unusual story appeared in a Paris publication (Reuters):

A French hunter was shot by his dog after he left a loaded shotgun in the trunk of his car with two dogs and one of the animals accidentally stepped on the trigger, police said Wednesday.
The man, from the village of Espelette in the Basque region, was admitted to a hospital in the nearby town of Bayonne Monday with lead shot injuries to the hip. "As he was driving along, one of his dogs accidentally set off the gun," said a police official.

And I thought that tragedies involving guns, moving vehicles, and dogs happened only in the rural southeastern United States! Obviously, this reported event demonstrates that human carelessness is ubiquitous, transcending all cultures.

This story reminded me that, despite our best efforts, or because of our negligence, unexpected reversals will occur. Of course, as in this story, we often invite serious negative consequences into our lives by our own irresponsibility. Obviously, loaded guns and dogs shouldn’t be kept in the same enclosed area.

There are times, however, when tragedies occur that have no clear human cause-effect relationship. Sometimes we face difficulties or hardships due to circumstances far beyond our personal control. Perhaps these are the most difficult situations to accept, especially for those who are attempting to walk with God. In those times, it’s good to keep three clear biblical teachings in mind. First, we live in a broken world that has been devastated by sin (Rom. 8). While our world continues to bear the marks of God's good, creative intentions it, nonetheless, has been twisted by the Fall. Since the cosmos no longer completely functions according to God's perfect will, including those who bear His image, bad things will happen.

Second, the forces of evil actively work to thwart the good will of God, and occasionally temporarily succeed (Dan. 10). Finally, by the resurrection of Christ, God has gained the ultimate victory over evil, and has secured the final vindication of His people (Revelation).

While I dare not attempt to predict specifics, I’m sure that, like every preceding year, 2009 will have its share of the unexpected—both good and bad. Further, though we can’t predict the specific outcome of events in our own space-time continuum, we can be assured of one incontrovertible truth: good (God) will prevail. This overarching truth provides tremendous strength for living through the unexpected.