I have a heavy heart as I write this morning. Two days ago, a young white male entered a grocery store in a predominantly African-American neighborhood in Buffalo, New York, and opened fire on the inside. In the end, ten people were killed and others injured.

Many of you know about the new book project in which I am currently engaged, co-authored with my good friend, Mark Minear. The working title is Finding Yourself in Chaos: A Journey of Self-Discovery for Religious Leaders.

In his book, Signs of Hope in a Century of Despair, Elton Trueblood wrote:

"The strong chance is that many of us now living must accommodate ourselves to the prospect of living all of our days in the midst of strain. We have come into the stormy latitudes of history."

Pain and loss produce chaos. Chaos can have gentle beginnings, such as an inner tug deep within our souls that awakens us to the realization that the life we are now living is not fulfilling. Chaos can also begin in more dramatic ways—the death of a loved one, divorce, the loss of a job, academic failure, retirement, etc. Whatever the impetus, chaos is uncomfortable. It moves us out of familiar patterns and known ways; it causes us to re-evaluate what is important and how our lives are being lived; and, if we heed the signs, it sets us on a journey of seeking more of what is missing.