Hurting people in a broken world ...

Psalm 10:17
LORD, you know the hopes of the helpless. Surely you will hear their cries and comfort them. (NIV)

Faces of sadness and fear surround us. There are people all around us who live in complete and utter misery. Maybe you are one of them? I pray not, but if you are, there is hope in Jesus Christ!

I'm sitting here doing counseling homework and my mind is saddened by some statistics I've just stumbled upon in my textbook, "Competent Christian Counseling." The statistics are dated back to 1992 - which I'm sure has skyrocketed in present day.

Every single day in America the following events occur:

• six teens commit suicide
• seven kids, ages 10-19, are murdered
• seven juveniles, ages 17 and under, are arrested for murder
• eighty teens are raped
• five hundred teens begin using drugs
• one thousand teens begin using alcohol
• one thousand unwed teenage girls have a baby
• more than one thousand teenage girls get an abortion
• more than twenty-seven hundred kids watch their parents separate or divorce
• more than one hundred thousand kids bring a gun or other weapon to school

These are just SOME of the events of grief and tragedy that occur on a daily basis in America. I don't list these to sadden you ... but to help us, as Christians, realize that now, more than ever, we are being called to help these grieving people going through life-changing and life-altering events. Now, more than ever, people going through all of the events listed above (and beyond) are looking for something missing in their lives ... they are looking for something to fill the void. Drugs and alcohol can not fill their "void" ... only Jesus Chist can! There is an abundance of Bible verses that can offer hope and help even us, as Christians, cope with whatever you may be dealing with at this very moment. Cling to these verses - hang them up on your wall, write them on an index card - keep them in your purse and keep them handy! Satan will try and attack us --- we must be prepared!

I encourage you to seek people in your life who may be going through a period of grief, trauma and looking to fill that "void." Do not be afraid to let God speak in and through you. To be honest, this is something I'm trying to work on myself; it's so easy to get consumed with the busyness of life and forget those around me----I don't want to forget - they are His beloved children!

Psalm 34:18
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed. (NLT)

Proverbs 18:10
The name of the Lord is a strong fortress; the godly run to him and are safe. (NLT)

Isaiah 40:31
But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. (KJV)

Isaiah 43:2
When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. (NLT)

Lamentations 3:22-24
The unfailing love of the LORD never ends! By his mercies we have been kept from complete destruction. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each day. I say to myself, "The LORD is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!" (NASB)