As they headed out the door to sing their hearts out at the Ariana Grande concert, nobody at the Manchester Arena could have prepared themselves for what would unfold.
Police suspect a suicide bomber is what caused the explosion that has so far left 22 dead and more than 60 injured following the concert on Monday evening.
22 lives were cut short. 22 families now shattered. And our world is struggling to fathom what has happened.
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In times like these, I’ve learned that we often don’t know how to respond.
It breaks our hearts to see such tragedy rock our world. And even being thousands of miles away, events like this feel so close to home. So as a way to stand in solidarity with those who are suffering through unimaginable circumstances, we start to see these hashtags floating around: #PrayForManchester, #PrayForPeace, #PrayForAriana.
In fact, it happens so regularly that as soon as something “big” appears on the news, you can bet that social media is already blowing up with “prayers.”
But imagine how different our world would look if the power of prayer was happening as often as the hashtag is trending.
Why We Hashtag
These tragic events are writing the worst parts of history, and they’re becoming so “normal” that the only way we know to respond to them is with a hashtag.
To be honest, I don’t think I’m alone in feeling helpless. Like, I don’t know what we could possibly do to help the situation, so we resort to this.
When something tragic happens in our world, we are informed of the events almost instantly. In some cases even while it’s still happening. In these moments, social media creates a platform for caring. Almost to a fault—like if you don’t post about how you’re caring for the events, you must not care.
But imagine how different our world would look if the power of prayer was happening as often as the hashtag is trending.
Praying Is Far More Than Sentences Without Spaces
So this hashtag floats around, “#PrayForManchester” and helpless people like me share it to show that we’re aware of and thinking about the events that have unfolded.
But when it comes down to the root of it all, are we really praying? Or just sharing a hashtag to show that we care.
I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve told people, “I’m praying for you.” Then the moment passes, that prayer completely slips my mind, and it never happens. Or maybe I’ll say a prayer right in that moment, before I forget. But if I’m being honest, it’s probably not all-that intentional, and my heart probably is in a position of asking something of God, rather than “entering his gates with praise and thanksgiving.”