On Monday night of this week, May 1, Sarah and I attended a special evening dedicated to educators. In the aftermath of the Covenant School shooting here in Nashville there has been a different feeling in this town. Nashville has often been referred to as a “big small town.” Although it’s getting a little to big for its britches in some respects, Music City still comes together in some pretty powerful ways. Monday night was certainly no exception.

I’m sharing about this event for a couple of reasons.

First, the event was free to anyone associated with education. One had to go online and register for tickets to the event whose title sponsor was The Onsite Foundation. The opportunity to hear the likes of Lauren Daigle, Tyler Hubbard, CeCe Winans, and Trisha Yearwood perform was reason enough to go, but there were also numerous speakers who shared wonderful insights on mental health, especially for teachers.

Among the most poignant of guests were five female members of the faculty from Douglas High School in the Miami area who survived the horrific mass shooting where 17 people were killed. They shared their memories of shock and pain, but they also reminded everyone that life, though it will never be the same, can still be embraced, and that joy can still be found.

Seated in a reserved section just in front of us was a contingent of faculty and staff from Covenant School. It was almost surreal to observe their reactions to the different portions of the program. We can only imagine all of the feelings they were processing, but when CeCe sang “The Goodness of God,” and was later joined by Daigle on “Believe For It,” these Covenant people led the crowd in hands that were alternately raised in praise and wiping tears. It was an amazing moment.

As Trisha Yearwood sang “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” the iconic photo of the rainbow sky over Covenant’s campus was a brilliant reminder that God is with us even in our darkest hours.

The second reason for writing this morning lies in all the feelings that we’ve been processing since the passing of Sarah’s mother. When a person lives to be 100 or more, their death cannot be a surprise. The surprise actually comes in that they have lived for so long. Bea lived long and well!

Sarah and I have talked about how suddenly different life is now that Miss Bea no longer makes her way to the kitchen table for her morning regimen of cinnamon raisin toast or to the sofa to watch Gaither Homecoming videos. We are now freer to come and go at our own pace to events such as I have described here.

But with that freedom we are also aware of the passage of time in our own lives. How long will we live? What are the things we would like most to accomplish in the years we have left? Whose lives can we pour into now?

On a recent day trip to see our oldest grandson play baseball, my dad and I were talking about some of these things. He’s 86 and although his body is challenged his mind is still very keen. On the ride home we talked about what has meant the most to him. In almost every case, Daddy Talmadge talked about people and moments he specifically remembered as each person was mentioned.

The river that runs through our lives, connecting us in times of joy and pain, flows swiftly at points and quietly in others, but always through the relationships we develop with people. If your view of others is led by suspicion it should be no surprise that the river of life is threatening. If, however, you seek to find the best in people, even though they will occasionally disappoint you, there can be moments of great triumph.

Feelings can be fleeting but that doesn’t negate their significance. In all of life’s challenges these days, I hope you feel like there is still hope for a better day. Invest in the feelings that bring hope and know that someone is pulling for you to experience it even when you can’t see it for yourself.

LoveGod #LovePeople