On Tragedy and HopeInside MagicMagic News Updated Daily for the Professional Magician

The LORD then said to him, “This is the land which I swore to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob that I would give to their descendants. I have let you feast your eyes upon it, but you shall not cross over.”

So there, in the land of Moab, Moses, the servant of the LORD, died as the LORD had said.

Deuteronomy 34:4-5

Each time I see Siegfried & Roy on the cover of this month?s Magic Magazine, I become sad. And when I read John Moehring?s Editor?s Letter, ?Endings,? the reality of their horrible tragedy hits home. Mr. Moehring writes of the unfairness ?that the Siegfried & Roy show did not get to have an ending. Fate denied them the chance to give the show a triumphant curtain call.?

We know that every breath we take is only by the permissive will of God. We have no bargaining power with our Creator. In Paul?s imagery, it is laughable that the clay should tell the potter how it is to be formed or worked. But we, or at least I, fall into the trap of believing I have some power apart from God. I think that I can decide how it will go and how I will end.

…

So there, in the land of Moab, Moses, the servant of the LORD, died as the LORD had said.

Deuteronomy 34:4-5

My invocation of one of the more poignant stories in the Torah was not to say Roy Horn was on par with Moses or that Moses somehow received a raw deal. It was more of an empathetic connection between the tragedy of someone not being permitted to see a journey through to the end.

I can only imagine the bittersweet feelings Siegfried and Roy would have had if circumstances allowed them to end their career on their own terms. They spent so much time working and perfecting and tearing down and reworking their various acts and resisted the negative rebuffs tossed in their path as they marched towards the Mirage. They truly love Magic and gave so much to it. Without Siegfried & Roy, the magic capital of the world would not be Las Vegas.

But when Roy was dragged from the stage by one of the animals he deeply loved, there was no time to be philosophical. We said our prayers, sent cards and emails and prayed again that the same Roy that could grab a rope and swing high over the crowds each night, 44 weeks a year, would be strong enough to just survive.

For the 270 people that lost their jobs upon the closing of the show, the impact of Roy?s tragic injuries also hit home in a non-philosophical way. They were suddenly without work. Two days earlier, they were working on the top show, the most secure gig, on the Vegas strip. In the course of one evening it was all over for them and they lost, by all accounts, a wonderful pair of men for whom to work.

But now we do have time to be philosophical and think about the real sense of loss magicians feel. I am guessing it is a similar feeling our brothers and sisters experienced on Halloween day in 1926 as word of Houdini?s death filtered through the community. In both cases, magic lost men who seemed unstoppable.

But even our next breath is measured and permitted only by the Grace of God. If anyone of us were called by God to leave this world in the next minute, there is nothing we could offer to free us from the requirement. We have no control, none. Fortunately, we have a loving father with control, all.

So it is not unfair or unjust that Moses should be denied the chance to walk to the Promised Land or that Roy should be denied the chance to end his career with the appropriate celebration and accolades. It may seem unjust but we know God is not unjust. It may seem unfair, but we know God is not unfair.

God is just, fair and caring. He shares our sadness even with His understanding of how every ?tragedy? is actually part of His eternal plan. We?re not alone as we wait in the doctor?s office for test results for a child fighting leukemia or as we work with that child to prepare for his or her inevitable death after hearing the tragic medical report. God knows the pain we feel and the seemingly inconsolable sadness and no doubt pardons our anger at Him for what we do not understand.

There are times when I can see images of Siegfried and Roy or read the 34^th chapter of Deuteronomy and not feel sad but have hope in the knowledge that our God is one who truly cares for his children and even me. But there are also times when I can see or hear about children facing terminal illness, co-workers who have lost their lives in the blink of an eye through accidents or heart attack or suicide and I can easily lose hope.

But this essay doesn?t end with depression or a spiral of hopelessness. The emotions that I feel and that others feel upon seeing tragedy or what we expected to happen not happen are emotions based not on truth or hope. To give up hope or ignore the truth that God is completely in charge and completely with us is to live in an unreal world. It assumes that we have control or can say what should or shouldn?t happen. We have no such control and our desire to change the future is nothing more than our delusion.

But the good news, the truth, is that there is one in charge that has it all under control and wishes only the best for us always. It?s not a matter of us surrendering our control, we never had it. If my next breath is a gift, I can hardly claim control over the rest of my life. But we are promised in Romans 8:28 ?all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.? We need only chose to believe or disbelieve this promise.

So we hope and we pray for Roy?s complete recovery and we are all sad that he and Siegfried were denied what we hoped for them. But in faith, we know that God is not only sovereign over the big things ? creating universes and laws of physics ? but also over all things. Seen from the eternal perspective, our sadness will end. Where we now see God?s plan through a dim glass, soon we will see Him face to face. We will be fully understood and fully understand. 1 Cor. 13:12