I was enjoying my son’s high school soccer game when the relative calm and normalcy of that warm September afternoon was shattered by a sound both distinctive and alarming—the sound of sirens. The shrill whine seemed out of place at such a pleasant moment, and it demanded my attention. According to singer Don Henley, a siren usually means that “somebody’s going to emergency” or “somebody’s going to jail.” He’s right. In either case, someone’s day, perhaps including the law enforcement or rescue personnel, just took a turn for the worse.

As I lost my attention on the game and thought about the siren fading into the distance, it occurred to me that sirens are a reminder of a powerful reality: Our world is sadly broken. Whether the siren tells us of criminal activity or personal tragedy, it reminds us that something is desperately wrong and needs to be made right.

At such times, it helps to remember that God sees our world in its brokenness and has pledged that one day He will wipe away the old and “make all things new” (Rev. 21:5). That promise encourages us in the hardships of life, and it provides the whisper of His comfort—a whisper that can drown out even the sound of sirens.  — Bill Crowder