I'm sorry Japan, it was my fault, too.

I'm sorry, Japan. I'm sorry Haiti. I'm sorry, New Zealand. It was my fault. Mine and my brother's.

I just finished reviewing some stories from the Boston Globe's The Big Picture, with all the devestation and destruction going on around the world.

After the initial response of horror, and sympathy for their pain, and then the subsequent response at the question of how many of them had met and known Jesus as their Saviour, the reflection went further.

It struck home to the heart.

As Seventh-day Adventists, we believe that we live in a time of judgment, and because we believe that by a deeper surrender to the Holy Spirt, by His development of character in us, we may participate in hastening Christ's return. It is because of this fact that we hold some significant responsibility of the pain and suffering of our fellow human beings as well as the pain in the heart of God in the suffering of His people.

We don't like to think so, but our lack of surrender, our prideful rebellion as He daily speaks to us of those defects in our character and lack of strength in obedience, and more importantly of the remedy for each, it is these things that are delaying His return, and by correlation, prolonging the destruction that is so devestating to us and our brethren. Though we do not directly cause the tsunami or the natural destruction, we directly prevent Christ's fulfillment of His character in each of our lives. Though we cannot choose the weather patterns around the world, we can choose our response to His Spirit's promptings.

Though He might not have shown us all that needs to be surrendered in our lives, he has shown us things that need to be surrendered today. Now. Our neglect in Bible Study, our prideful self-righteousness, our laziness in prayer, our lack of faithfulness in duty, our disbelief in the words inspired by His Holy Spirit, our own self-justification that those words are not binding to us today, and further, our progress in deepening the initial surrender of self. Those things we can choose to surrender today.

In an indirect way, we are at fault for Sendai, Christchurch, Port-au-Prince's pain. We didn't have to let this all get this far. And since we participate in the trouble, in our remorse, doesn't it behoove us to be part of its resolution?