God’s Presence in Hope

Summary

As I sat down to work on this sermon, the words of Psalm 137 ran through my mind: By the rivers of Babylon—there we sat down and there we wept when we remembered Zion. On the willows there we hung up our harps….How could we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land?

In the midst of news of terror and gun violence and Islamophobia and racism, how can we speak about God’s presence in hope? In the midst of so much bad news, I too, am tempted to hang up my harp and sit down and weep. From Christian College presidents who call on students to carry weapons to teach “those Muslims” a lesson, to presidential candidates who spew hatred and racism, where is the good news? Where is the hope?