Return to Normal?

"Therefore tell the people: This is what the LORD Almighty says: 'Return to me,' declares the LORD Almighty, 'and I will return to you...' "  

Zechariah 1:3 (NIV)

After the latest act of terror in Boston, officials of the government keep talking about when things will "return to normal". One of the suspects is dead, the other in custody. We can all go back to life as usual, right?

The answer to that question is "no". We cannot go back--to go back would be burying our heads in the sand, pretending as if this tragedy never happened. There are lessons to be learned, not the least of which is our need for God. America has abandoned God, so God has taken His hands off America. We no longer have the benefit of His wisdom, His guidance, His hand of protection. Does that mean that God wants nothing more to do with America? No--He is always calling people to repentance--but that involves swallowing our pride and admitting that we have done wrong.

Our country is obsessed with materialism--our possessions are just a diversion that keep us from focusing on what really matters. Things never satisfy the deepest longing of our heart. That is why we frantically keep acquiring more--trying to fill an empty space that only God can fill.

Adding new security cameras, hundreds more police officers, or detailed background checks will not make us safe. There is a sickness in our country that only God can heal. His law was given for our good. Without God, our country is morally bankrupt--do whatever seems right in your own eyes. That is exactly what these terrorists are doing.

Go back to business as usual? That will not be possible for those who have been personally affected by this tragedy--those who have lost limbs, or those who have lost loved ones. It should not be possible for the rest of us. If we don't learn something from this crisis, if we are not personally changed, then the enemy has won.