Don't Forget to Groan, 10/16

A daughter of Lt. Col. Robert Baldwin, of Eliza, Ill., looks on as a flag is presented during his burial service at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va., on Oct. 6. Baldwin was killed in Afghanistan.

(Why should we groan?)

Don't Forget to Groan, 10/8

On Monday, October 4th, a large reservoir filled with toxic red sludge in western Hungary ruptured, releasing approximately 700,000 cubic meters (185 million gallons) of stinking caustic mud, which killed many animals, at least four people, and injured over 120 - many with chemical burns. The 12-foot-high flood of sludge inundated several towns, sweeping cars off the road as it flowed into the nearby Marcal River:

A 34-year old resident checks his new furniture in Kolontar, Hungary on October 6, 2010 after a wave of toxic red mud swept through the small village.

An animal lies dead in the toxic mud, which flooded the village of Kolontar.

Don't Forget to Groan, 6/12

Mary Hoefflin, left, and Lauren Densic hug amid tornado debris on Main Street in Millbury, Ohio, on June 6. Authorities say tornados and thunderstorms that swept through the Midwest overnight killed a number of people in Ohio, destroyed homes and damaged a high school gymnasium.

(Why should we groan?)

Don't Forget to Groan, 6/3

Guatemalan Luis Perez mourns over the coffins of his wife and his two-year-old son, who died along with nine other people, when a landslide destroyed their home in Canaan, in the northern outskirts of Guatemala City.

(Why should we groan?)

Don't Forget to Groan, 5/20

Kim Yoo-chul, 41, and his partner Choi Mi-sun, 25, fed their three-month-old baby only on visits home between 12-hour sessions at a neighbourhood internet cafe, where they were raising an avatar daughter in a Second-Life-style game called Prius online, police said.

Leaving their real daughter at their home in a suburb of Seoul to fend for herself, the pair, who were unemployed, spent hours role-playing in the virtual reality game, which allows users to choose a career and friends, granting them offspring as a reward for passing a certain level.

The pair became obsessed with nurturing their virtual daughter, called Anima, but neglected their real daughter, who was not named.

Read the rest of the article here.

(Why should we groan?)

Don't Forget to Groan, 5/14

Rescuers search for survivors at the site of a Libyan Afriqiyah Airways plane crash in Tripoli, Libya, on May 12. A 9-year-old Dutch boy was the sole survivor of the crash, which killed 103 people.

(Why should we groan?)

Don't Forget to Groan, 5/1

A landslide destroyed portions of a major highway outside the port city of Keelung, northern Taiwan, as seen in this April 25 aerial image. Four people were killed.

(Why should we groan?)

Don't Forget to Groan, 4/27

Young Indian ragpickers search for valuables and recyclable materials at the city's largest legal municipal waste landfill in Mavallipura village on the outskirts of Bangalore.

(Why should we groan?)

Don't Forget to Groan, 4/17

On April 14th, residents of China's remote Yushu County, located on the Tibetan plateau, were awoken by a magnitude 6.9 earthquake. Chinese state media now says the death toll has risen to 1,144. Rescuers continue to search for survivors as homeless residents work to recover what they can and set up shelter from the freezing overnight temperatures (see more photos here).

(Why should we groan?)

Don't Forget to Groan, 4/15

A woman cries outside her gutted house after a fire at a slum area in New Delhi on April 8.

(Why should we groan?)

Don't Forget to Groan, 4/8

With floodwaters rising inside her home in Novy Sverzhan, Belarus, on March 27, Nina Yaroshevich puts on rubber boots to make her way around. A nearby river flooded some 150 homes.

(Why should we groan?)

Don't Forget to Groan, 3/31

Schneily Similien plays with his new prosthetic leg before trying it on at Hopital Albert Schweitzer in Deschappelles, Haiti, March 22. The 4-year-old was hurt in the Jan. 12 earthquake and had to have his left leg amputated.

Of course the receiving of a prosthetic leg is a great blessing, but the fact that it was necessary and that this boy had to have his leg amputated is another reminder of how broken this world is.

(Why should we groan?)

Don't Forget to Groan, 3/22

An injured child cries as he sits next to other victims at the site of suicide bombing in the town of Saidu Sharif, in Pakistan's Swat Valley, on March 13. A suicide attacker struck a security checkpoint, killing scores of people and injuring dozens.

(Why should we groan?)

Don't Forget to Groan, 3/17

Family members attend the funeral of Marine Lance Cpl. Kielin T. Dunn of Chesapeake, Va., on March 4 at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va. Dunn was killed during combat operations in Afghanistan.

(Why should we groan?)

Don't Forget to Groan, 3/11

(Why should we groan?)

Springtime and Salvation

I went for a run outside today for the first time since early December. The temperature is in the low 60's, and it seems like Spring is arriving in the Northeast.

I can't recall ever feeling so excited about the arrival of Spring as I do right now. And I imagine that is because I've never experienced a Winter as harsh as the one we've experienced this year.

It's a little parable of our lives in Christ, isn't it? The glory of our coming salvation gets sweeter and sweeter in light of the bitterness and pain of this present life. As Paul says, "Our light, momentary afflictions are producing for us a weight of glory beyond all comparison" (2 Corinthians 4:18).

Going out running today, I kind of felt like I was in Narnia, knowing that Aslan was on the move. How precious it will be, when the true and better Aslan returns to make all things new.

Don't Forget to Groan, 2/27

At 3:34 am local time, today, February 27th, a devastating magnitude 8.8 earthquake struck Chile, one of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded. According to Chilean President-elect Sebastian Pinera, at least 120 people are known to have been killed so far. The earthquake also triggered a Tsunami which is right now propagating across the Pacific Ocean, due to arrive in Hawaii in hours (around 11:00 am local time). The severity of the Tsunami is still not known, but alerts are being issued across the Pacific.

Groan...and Give

Locals look for their beloved among the dead bodies outside the morgue, in Port-au-Prince.

As Christians we groan, knowing that earthquakes are not the way things ought to be. But we don't only groan. Here are 11 charities collecting donations for relief in Haiti. My church, Joy Community Fellowship, will be giving this way.

Don't Forget to Groan, 1/4

This video certainly made me groan. It also made me cry:

Don't Forget to Groan, 1/1

A new year doesn't change the fact the world is still groaning with the pains of childbirth, waiting on tip toe for its redemption:


An Afghan child looks from a doorway as the shadow of a United States Marine is seen on the wall during an operation in Garmsir district, southern Afghanistan.

If you click the photo to enlarge it, you can see that the boys eyes are filled with fear. But one day, soldiers will beat their swords into plowshares. On that day, there will be no fear.

But until that day, we groan.