A Time to Share – Sunday, February 02, 1986
As the hymn suggests, the goodness and love of Christ never fails, but tragic events in our lives are painful still. Sorrow comes to each of us, in one form or another, for one reason or another. Sometimes it is personal and individual. Sometimes, like the explosion of the space shuttle, a whole nation, indeed, a whole world, may grieve together.
Great tragedies can never be explained or justified in the mind of mortal man. But it is time when faith in the assurance and eternal love of God must replace our doubt and concern for the present. It is a time to share our sorrow and try to learn from the sacrifices of others.
Tragedy in any form is never welcome, but, for the strong of character, it can be beneficial. If we examine the personal lives of some whom we honor, we often find that they experienced personal loss and failure. Washington and Lincoln, whose birthday we mark in February, are honored not just for their accomplishments but also for their character in the face of tragedy. Theodore Roosevelt said, “Far better it is to dare mighty things… even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.”
If we share the victory, then we must also be willing to share the defeat. But there is strength in our sharing. The comfort we give is also the comfort we receive. The prayers we say for others bring peace to our own hearts. The brotherhood we feel gives us added courage to go on.
It is often at such moments of common concern that the brotherhood of man is at its best. Aristotle said, “A common danger unites even the bitterest enemies.”
Oh, if we could have the same unity, the same sense of urgency in expressing brotherhood in our lives at times when life is not so dramatic but when the results are just as important. We’re reminded at times like these that there is a need for the brotherhood of man at all times and all places, and we cannot and should not ignore it.
If we must have tragedy in the world, and we will, let us at least learn from our past. We have bonded together to help the starving in Africa, to dig the buried from under the rubble of Mexico, to pull the ravaged from the avalanches of Colombia. And now we have joined our faith and tears in respect for seven American astronauts who died while the world watched. Perhaps their loss can be our gain if it helps us move one step closer to world unity.
As we meditate and ponder these events, let us unite in our determination to bring peace to the world—even the peace of Christ whose love we need at times like these.
February 02, 1986
Broadcast Number 2,946