Spiritual Guidance:

Years ago, a young boy was killed in a car wreck outside my church. It was awful. One day his family was talking about going to the park, and the next day they had to talk about funeral preparations.

What do you say to his second-grade classmates, all of whom wanted to attend? What are the words that will make any sense to the tragedy, horror and unfairness of it all?

Grown-up words were too big. Adult theologies — even Bible stories — sounded too foreign, too far off, too many words and not enough tears. So we started his funeral with his favorite song, “Thriller,” by Michael Jackson.

The music video opens in a graveyard filled with zombies and scary things — all of whom dance well. Here was something the kids knew. They all knew the lyrics. And here, too, were scary things that turned out not to be quite so terrible as we first imagined.

Suddenly the words of Jesus seem more understandable, too. “Don’t be scared. You are my friend. I will never abandon you. One day, you can come and live with me at my house. Love each other as I have loved you.”

We think we can survive on our own. But when tragedy arrives, we remember the deeper truths: that we are made to care for one another, and that God cares for all of us. Sometimes we need songs and stories to help us through the pain to see these deeper truths.

The fascination with Michael Jackson’s music and misadventures will continue, but his real legacy is for the second-graders who found a way to say goodbye to one of their friends through his music. For a moment “Thriller” was a window to see God’s comfort and hope. We pray it was also Michael’s doorway into heaven.

MARK WILEY is the pastor of Mesa Verde United Methodist Church in Costa Mesa.