A Lament and Prayer for Camp Mystic
The Guadalupe River floods ravaged the Texas Hill Country, claiming at least 69 lives, including 21 children, with 11 girls and one counselor still missing from Camp Mystic as of Sunday morning. The river surged 26 feet in 45 minutes, destroying homes, cabins, and lives with little warning. Parents grieve children like Sarah Marsh, Janie Hunt, Lila Bonner, and others, including best friends Katie and Emma, and Kellyanne Lytal, whose absence shatters hearts beyond reason. The camp’s director, Richard “Dick” Eastland, died trying to save girls, deepening the community’s sorrow. We trust these children are with Jesus, yet their absence pushes us past the breaking point. Through Scripture (ESV), we find words for this grief, a lament for our loss, and a call to pray for those gone and those still missing.
Psalm 22:1–2
Psalm 22:1–2 voices our pain: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest.” These words, spoken by Jesus on the cross, echo parents mourning their daughters. Why were Katie and Emma, inseparable friends, taken? Why no time to evacuate? There’s no right in this-no sense in children dying at a Christian camp, no justice in 11 girls and a counselor still missing. We believe they’re with Jesus, but their absence leaves us groaning, feeling abandoned.
Lamentations 3:19–20
Lamentations 3:19–20 captures our despair: “Remember my affliction and my wanderings, the wormwood and the gall! My soul continually remembers it and is bowed down within me.” The bitterness of losing 21 children, including five confirmed from Camp Mystic, and the agony of 11 still missing crush our spirits. Parents who sent their daughters to Camp Mystic for faith and joy now face heartbreak. Survivors, like 13-year-old Elinor Lester, describe the terror of rising waters, while younger campers’ cabins were swept away. We know our loved ones are with Jesus, but their absence is a poison that lingers.
Job 3:11–12
Job 3:11–12 speaks our questions: “Why did I not die at birth, come out from the womb and expire? Why did the knees receive me? Or why the breasts, that I should nurse?” Parents ask why their children, full of life, were lost to a flood. Why were they nurtured only to be taken? These questions break us, defying reason. The loss of Dick Eastland, who gave his life for the girls, deepens this pain. We hold that our children are with Jesus, but the why of their absence tears at our faith.
Ecclesiastes 4:1
Ecclesiastes 4:1 names our helplessness: “Again I saw all the oppressions that are done under the sun. And behold, the tears of the oppressed, and they had no one to comfort them!” The flood was an oppressor, destroying Camp Mystic with no warning, leaving tears for 69 dead and 11 missing. The Christian community weeps with no easy comfort. We believe our loved ones are in heaven, but here, we’re left with sorrow and no answers.
Holding Grief and Hope
This grief breaks us. Parents cling to memories of Katie and Emma’s shared laughter or Kellyanne’s bright spirit, knowing their children are with Jesus-“Let the little children come to me… for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 19:14)-yet ache for their presence. The 11 missing girls and counselor, possibly stranded in trees or out of communication, deepen this anguish. But Scripture offers hope amid lament. Psalm 22:24 says, “For he has not despised or abhorred the affliction of the afflicted… he has heard, when he cried to him.” Lamentations 3:21–22 adds, “But this I call to mind… The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases.” These don’t erase the pain but affirm God hears and stays with us.
A Call to Prayer
We pray for the 21 children lost, including Sarah, Janie, Lila, Katie, Emma, Kellyanne, and others, now with Jesus, and for Dick Eastland, who died a hero. May their families find comfort. We pray urgently for the 11 girls and one counselor still missing from Camp Mystic, that they be found, like the survivor carried 12 miles. We pray for over 1,000 responders, including 167 using helicopters, searching through debris. Father, hear our cry: “Why have you forsaken us?” Comfort the grieving, guide the search, and hold us in Your love. Amen.
We gather to mourn and pray, lighting candles for those lost, supporting funds like the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country, and sharing memories. There’s no right in this loss, but there’s right in our lament, our prayers, and our faith. We grieve, but we trust God hears, holding hope for the missing and reunion in His presence.
