It was a perfect day...the weather was amazing! (So much better than the year before when it hit a record 87 degrees!) The people on the course that were running were in great spirits, and as usual, the spectators were completely encouraging.
I have run this marathon once before and remember the magic of the race...It cannot be described and must be experienced...
Unfortunately, the magic ran out. Spoiled and tainted by two men with unsure motives.
I was at mile 18 when I was taken off the course by the police and race officials. They took my brother, my cousin and myself to a medical tent. After that, things became a blur. Telephones stopped working, police and ambulance vehicles were seemingly everywhere, and there was an atmosphere of chaos that gave birth to an anxiety that would not quickly dissipitate. My brother, cousin, I fell behind my father and as a result, he was closer to where the bombs had gone off.
In all honesty, I wasn't very worried about my dad. He's a very smart guy and from his previous run times, I knew that he would still be a few miles away from the finish line...I was far more concerned for my family. They were suppose to be at the finish line. From what I can tell, the bombs were intended to hurt the spectators and family members of the runners. That made it much more scary than I ever imagined.
I finally did get a call from my wife and she informed me that everyone was safe...at this point, we had to figure out how to find each other, get out of the city and back home...this took hours, but we eventually did it...
As I reflected on the event and chaos that continues to ensue in the New England area, I needed help to process the events. I turned to the scriptures. They have been a faithful guide for the last 18 years, and they continued to be in these uncertain times...
I turned to 1 Peter..."Do not repay evil with evil, or insult with insult, but with blessing."
My children (9 and 11) were in the traffic, they saw the police and felt the chaos. When they got to my parent's home, they watched the videos and began to understand what they had just been a part of...they had questions and the next day, we began to deal with them.
I asked them what they saw in the videos. They described the blood, smoke and fear. I asked them what it made them feel. They shared that they were scared, insecure and frightened. One shared with me that they were afraid that white smoke would be everywhere and that there was no more safe places.
After talking through their emotions, we read the scripture in 1 Peter 1:9. I asked them to think about the videos that they saw one more time. They told me about the violence and blood again. However, this time they noticed one additional thing...many people running into the smoke. People tearing their shirts off to stop the bleeding of innocent victims.
My children -- actually all of us -- were watching 1 Peter 1:9 being played out right in front of us. People were repaying evil with blessing. As I was processing the situation and helping my children to deal with it, I wanted them to know, as Christians, we are not exempt from the evils of this world. We are a part of this world. We will also feel the same array of emotions that everyone else feels. These emotions are okay and normal in most cases, but the Bible tells us how to respond...with blessing. We are to overcome our fear and engage in helping our communities and society. We must not stop sharing our faith, we must not stop helping our neighbor, we must not stop running this race...They may have stopped the marathon, but not the one that we run.
Please remember all those that have been effected by this tragedy. Also, allow this time to stir within us, great levels of compassion and empathy for those in the world that live this out on a daily basis. Brothers and sisters live through out the world in very challenging circumstances. We must be vigilant, we must pray, we must be willing to sacrifice for them. Remember, repay evil with blessing. Go out today and be a blessing to those that meet you. They need you!
Please help with the Boston Relief Fund of the Boston Church of Christ that will go directly to the victims.
Sajjan Sharma
Lead Evangelist
Pioneer Valley Church of Christ
Springfield, Massachusetts
I was at mile 18 when I was taken off the course by the police and race officials. They took my brother, my cousin and myself to a medical tent. After that, things became a blur. Telephones stopped working, police and ambulance vehicles were seemingly everywhere, and there was an atmosphere of chaos that gave birth to an anxiety that would not quickly dissipitate. My brother, cousin, I fell behind my father and as a result, he was closer to where the bombs had gone off.
In all honesty, I wasn't very worried about my dad. He's a very smart guy and from his previous run times, I knew that he would still be a few miles away from the finish line...I was far more concerned for my family. They were suppose to be at the finish line. From what I can tell, the bombs were intended to hurt the spectators and family members of the runners. That made it much more scary than I ever imagined.
I finally did get a call from my wife and she informed me that everyone was safe...at this point, we had to figure out how to find each other, get out of the city and back home...this took hours, but we eventually did it...As I reflected on the event and chaos that continues to ensue in the New England area, I needed help to process the events. I turned to the scriptures. They have been a faithful guide for the last 18 years, and they continued to be in these uncertain times...
I turned to 1 Peter..."Do not repay evil with evil, or insult with insult, but with blessing."
My children (9 and 11) were in the traffic, they saw the police and felt the chaos. When they got to my parent's home, they watched the videos and began to understand what they had just been a part of...they had questions and the next day, we began to deal with them.
I asked them what they saw in the videos. They described the blood, smoke and fear. I asked them what it made them feel. They shared that they were scared, insecure and frightened. One shared with me that they were afraid that white smoke would be everywhere and that there was no more safe places.
After talking through their emotions, we read the scripture in 1 Peter 1:9. I asked them to think about the videos that they saw one more time. They told me about the violence and blood again. However, this time they noticed one additional thing...many people running into the smoke. People tearing their shirts off to stop the bleeding of innocent victims.
My children -- actually all of us -- were watching 1 Peter 1:9 being played out right in front of us. People were repaying evil with blessing. As I was processing the situation and helping my children to deal with it, I wanted them to know, as Christians, we are not exempt from the evils of this world. We are a part of this world. We will also feel the same array of emotions that everyone else feels. These emotions are okay and normal in most cases, but the Bible tells us how to respond...with blessing. We are to overcome our fear and engage in helping our communities and society. We must not stop sharing our faith, we must not stop helping our neighbor, we must not stop running this race...They may have stopped the marathon, but not the one that we run.
Please remember all those that have been effected by this tragedy. Also, allow this time to stir within us, great levels of compassion and empathy for those in the world that live this out on a daily basis. Brothers and sisters live through out the world in very challenging circumstances. We must be vigilant, we must pray, we must be willing to sacrifice for them. Remember, repay evil with blessing. Go out today and be a blessing to those that meet you. They need you!
Please help with the Boston Relief Fund of the Boston Church of Christ that will go directly to the victims.
Sajjan Sharma
Lead Evangelist
Pioneer Valley Church of Christ
Springfield, Massachusetts