There is a lot of religious language (and godtalk) that bothers me. I so tire of people saying: “God has so blessed me because mine was the only house left standing in a massive ice storm or fast-moving fire.” Or ‘We are so blessed to be able to buy this lake home right after the multi-million-dollar price went down.” Or, “It was a miracle that my cab blew a tire; I missed my flight---the one that crashed leaving 192 dead.” I personally would be terribly relived to realize that the delayed cab saved my life, but I struggle with all the blessings from God and the miracle stories like that.
There is a lot of religious language (and godtalk) that bothers me. I so tire of people saying: “God has so blessed me because mine was the only house left standing in a massive ice storm or fast-moving fire.” Or ‘We are so blessed to be able to buy this lake home right after the multi-million-dollar price went down.” Or, “It was a miracle that my cab blew a tire; I missed my flight---the one that crashed leaving 192 dead.” I personally would be terribly relived to realize that the delayed cab saved my life, but I struggle with all the blessings from God and the miracle stories like that.
I wonder if this also relates to survivors’ guilt, and perhaps also a complete lack of practice in the language of lament in our churches.