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Two very important people in my life took long-distance flights recently. Son Andrew flew back to Toronto. And Bernice was flying back from Chicago. You pray, you hope that their flights would be safe and uneventful. They were. I am sure there were those who prayed for their loved ones who were on Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17. God did not grant their prayers.

MH17, on a scheduled flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, crashed near the Ukraine-Russia border at 1415 (GMT), 17th July, 2014. All 295 on board are presumed dead. Various groups blame each other for the shooting down of an unarmed civilian airplane. The story has already been shanghaied by various groups wanting to score political points. Will we ever know the truth of what really happened? What we know is that many of us are numbed by yet another tragedy. It is not the only one. Here are some headlines on the BBC website today:

‘Deep shock’ over Malaysia jet crash

Israel starts Gaza ground offensive

Bolivia lowers working age to 10

French high-speed train crashes

India six year old ‘raped in school’

I know bad news sells. Still, there is bad news.
 
Last night, the Singapore Christian Medical and Dental Fellowship held its annual fellowship meeting. We were looking at the issue of human trafficking. This short video captured the mood of the issue (https://tinyurl.com/m6zl52w). This morning I woke up tired and with a bad headache. Didn’t feel inspired to write some “realistic biblical exhortation”. I just felt like groaning.

I feel in my bones
the groaning of creation
oh come Lord Jesus

I was thinking of this passage.

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed.  For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.

We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently. (Romans 8:18–25 NIV)

Some days, the realities of a fallen world kicks you in the gut. Some days it’s really hard to be patient.