A pastor in Texas says many people are asking him why God lets bad things happen to good people after flash floods killed at least 104 on Friday.
Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp, has confirmed that at least 27 girls and staff members are among the dead, with ten girls and a counselor from the camp still missing.
Pastor Travis Burleson told Premier it’s important to “hang on in faith and deal with the blows.” He continued: “God doesn’t just let bad things happen to good people; He lets bad things happen to all people. Does He prevent every wrong that happens? Of course not. But He can redeem and work through them.
“We live in a crazy, fallen, broken, sin-stained world, and we know this isn’t heaven yet—that's what’s coming. And so until then, we have to hang on in faith and deal with the blows.
“We have to remember, especially in moments like this, that God is still sovereign. He is stronger than our circumstances. Jesus made it very clear that in this world we will have trouble. But He said, ‘Take heart. I’ve overcome the world and the things that you encounter in the world.’”
Churches across Kerr County have been holding prayer vigils since the disaster struck, and the state’s governor, Greg Abbott, has asked for prayers as efforts continue to locate everyone who has been affected.
Camp Mystic has been situated on the shores of the Guadalupe River for almost a century. It’s popular with young Christians who stay for between one and four weeks to reconnect with Jesus and their faith.
Pastor Burleson said: “We can’t blame the camp for the location. I think a lot of people here want to blame someone, but it was weather—and this particular camp just happened to be in that area, right where that severe weather hit.”
He explained that many encampments in Texas are built along old dry creeks, and that this camp had cabins throughout a beautiful area where people go for recreation and leisure.
He added: “That night, the water came in, and while the cabins weren’t necessarily swept away, they filled up with water quickly. So the devastation was pretty quick.”
He described how a pastor friend opened his nearby church as soon as he heard news of the disaster, and it became a triage center and a base for distressed relatives: “Parents began driving in because they wanted to know what was going on. People were sleeping on the church pews and the floors while they were waiting to hear news. A lot of the girl campers are related to people in his church, so it’s been especially horrific for them.”
Christian humanitarian organizations Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association have deployed a Disaster Relief Unit and chaplains to the area.