Spring and Lessons from College

This morning, like most Sunday mornings, I went to church at Grace University Lutheran Church, LCM’s home. It was a lovely walk over and a beautiful service. Today, we sang and heard Psalm 23, The Lord is my shepherd. This morning, one verse in particular stood out to me.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

It seems a little odd, I’ll admit, thinking about the shadow of death on such a lovely and sunny morning. The ice is melting and life seems to be returning. However, if I’ve learned anything at college, it’s that our world is entirely unpredictable. Heart aneurysms happen. Suicides happen. Accidents happen. Life is incredibly fragile and we never know when we’ll be walking through the shadow of death.

But we never walk alone. God is with us through it all, although it’s easy to forget and oftentimes hard to see.

After Psalm 23, 23 read John 9:1-41, the story of Jesus healing a man born blind. Again, one line stood out to me.

“It was not because of his sins or his parents’ sins,” Jesus answered. “This happened so the power of God could be seen in him.”

I don’t pretend to know why bad things happen. But in every situation, God is present and powerful.

Today, the sun shone and the birds chirped. At Grace, we celebrated Peg’s 100th birthday. God’s love is all around us, even when life is difficult and unexplainable.

Meghan Lane