I haven't written anything in a while, in part because Sherry and I just moved to Morton, IL, and in part, because I can't find the words to express the pain that I feel over the innocents who are being murdered... as they worship their God, go out for the evening, or simply go about the business of living their lives. We've had mass shootings for decades in America, and I know that the issue is intermeshed with 2nd Amendment rights. It is also complicated by politicians who are judged by vastly different constituencies and by the fact that we have two distinctly different gun cultures in our country- one of which exists on the streets of Chicago and one of which finds its life on the corn fields of Iowa. But resolving the gun debates is not my purpose here.
On the contrary, my purpose is to implore Christians to get involved and to do what they can- as groups and as individuals- to stop the killing! We can't ignore the violent loss of life any longer. We can't ignore evil when it threatens our children, or pretend that we're not affected by it when it chips away at our souls. We can't hold our tongues and shrug our shoulders when infants are slaughtered in Texas sanctuaries or first-graders are murdered in their elementary school. We can't accept the premise that, if we go to a country music show or to a nightclub we may be gunned down for no reason at all. Death is defeated in Christ- I believe it- but I also know that it is the end of life on earth and that it creates a lifelong pain in the hearts of those who knew and loved the one who died. I know that the more violent the death and the younger the victim, the more shocking it is, and I know that we must not accept murder! Never, ever... because it is evil!
The Bible teaches us that we are created in God's Image- all of us, each one of us- and therefore, every life is sacred. We are sacred Creations with the potential to do wondrous things, and it is wrong- sinful- outrageous-for anyone to take a life that God has given! Everyone has the right to worship, party, work, and just live their lives without fearing that they will be gunned down. This is a God-given right. It is a sin each time a life is taken, and when it becomes an epidemic in which many lives are taken by violence... at an ever-increasing rate... Christians of all stripes and colors should raise their voices and demand a stop to the killing. Among all people, Christians should be shaken and outraged at the raw injustice and blatant evil of these shootings! We should be holding prayer meetings, we should be prayer warriors at home, we should lift our voices in loving truth, we should challenge our legislators, and we should have adult education classes on the topics. Pastors- young and old, Republican and Democrat- should preach on the sanctity of life, the affect of evil on all of us, and the pain that loss of life brings to a family and a country.
As Christians, we must resist the temptation to believe that the issue is too big to be solved and too sensitive to even be discussed. We must get involved because our Lord got involved and because he calls us to stand up for life and against injustice. He calls us, not only to mourn for those who have suffered loss, but also to speak against those who took the lives... and even as he sobbed over Lazarus' grave, he calls us to let our hearts break every time we think of one of those who lost their lives. He calls us to be burdened by their deaths and to get in touch with the deep pain that their mothers and fathers and brothers and sisters carry. He calls us to care and never to accept such evil, and he calls us to get involved in any way we can... with all the talents he has given us. Violence takes place in the social arena and it becomes a political issue. This is the way it always be, but violence, death, abuse- such as things as these- are essentially theological matters... and the people of God must lift their voices!
A friend of mine recently noted that the events of our time are breaking her heart, and she asked for our thoughts. Many people had profound things to say, I'm sure, but I will only note that: 1) we cannot solve all the issues of the world on our own and that some of them will not be fully solved until Christ returns; 2) each of us has the ability to give as much as have... to God on any given day; and 3) God has already given us the means to make a difference in His world. Go forth and do it, and never accept evil as some sort of ordinary thing! Our move to Morton is coming along, but the pain in my heart won't go away.
