This morning bells in churches across our Country rang at the precise time that a gunmen murder 26 people in NewTown, Connecticut one week ago.  The eerie sound of 26 individual tolls of the bell atop churches reminds us that something in our Country is wrong.  There was a time in which the tolling of a church bell would be a reminder to a community that church would be starting soon, to get ready to worship the living God.  Today, that sound serves to remind a nation and the world that evil truly does exist.  How do we move forward? What steps does a reeling nation is to take after such an atrocity?  Al Mohler, President of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary writes,

The prophet Jeremiah’s reference to Rachel and her lost children is heart-breaking. “Thus says the LORD:  ‘A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted for her children, because they are no more.’” Like Rachel, many parents, grandparents, and loved ones are weeping inconsolably even now, refusing to be comforted for their children, because they are no more.

Dr. Mohler goes on to provide four values that we all need to consider as part of renewing our lives after the murders in NewTown, Connecticut in an article entitled: Rachel Weeping for Her Children.  I appreciate his insights and convictions.  May our Country be humbled before the holy God of the Bible and find the courage and strength to repent.  May we long for the day when our church bells are used to summon people to worship Jesus.