On Parkland
I am not a preacher, Political analyst or anything of that nature. I started this article on twitter, but I had too much to say in tweets, so I decided to move to the only thing I know how to do: Write about it. If you are worried that this is going to turn political, that is not going to happen. The first thing that I am going to say may seem like it, more like it is, but after that, it will not be I promise. This is going to be shared from a Christian perspective, so if anything I say offends you, get over it and just hear what I have to say. I know that it is hard in these times but bear with me. This is going to be raw so bear with me.
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Luke 23: 34
And Jesus said, "Father forgive them, for they do not know what they do." (ESV)
At times like these, my mind instantly turns to Luke 23: 34, which is stated above. Just to give you all a little bit of context, this is taking place as Jesus is on the cross. Just below him, the Romans were below him casting lots for his bloody garments. He just got flogged 39 times (the most that one could get flogged and survive), nails were driven through his hands and feet, wearing a crown of thorns. He had been mocked and carried his cross up to skull mountain, just outside of Rome. All of this, and he still called out "Forgive them" as he was dying (Italicized to emphasize). This is something to keep in mind as I move forward with this article.
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Unless you live under a rock, you might have heard about the shooting at Parkland High School. According to reports, up to 18 kids were killed. Some kid that got expelled went back into the school and shot it up. There is nothing you can do to prepare yourself for it: that is until after it happens.
All this preparing is well and good, but what happens after is what matters. We could either go about it like baby's and use it to push our own political agendas, we can lock up our kids in the house because we are scared for them, or we can say "sending good vibes to the families of the victims." I guess most of these things are good things.
The one thing that I feel like we should not do until at least the primary investigation of the shooting takes place is push politics on it. When I was scrolling through my twitter feed, the first several tweets were political. I mean what the heck man. 18 kids just died and you push politics on it (Just 1 or 2 more paragraphs of ranting and I will get to the point of this article).
What is wrong with this picture? Number one: You are not giving family's the time to mourn, Number two: Interviewing kids as they just escaped so you can get a "real reaction" (all news networks. That's right. I just called you out), Number three: You need to hear both sides (Victims families, and the Shooters family) of the story before you push politics. (Bear with me this article is not just politics and anger).
We need to figure out a way to look past the politics of the situation and fix our eyes on the greater whole. I know that this can be difficult, and seem kind of corny, but we need to understand that we live in a fallen world. So I am going to say this: We do not have a gun problem. We do not have a people problem. We have a Sin Problem. The very sin that pushed Jesus on the cross.
So, to try and bring things together. We do need to change something in our lives but not the all the new gun control policy garbage because that will not change anything. The first murder in the bible was something other than a gun. Wheather it is Cains hands, a stone, etc. But it was not a gun. So stop blaming guns. It is not a problem with just the person. It is a sin problem. We can try and talk about solutions to at least limiting Gun violence, but what happens next, after we abolish guns. Do we abolish forks, knives, pencils, pens, scissors, or pretty much anything that humans touch? (Political high horse dismounted).
But now, it happened, so what can we do? Instead of muttering curses at each other, pushing politics, and unfollowing people, sending "good vibes". Take time to think of what you can do in the now.
If you live in the area where this occurred, you love the people that were affected whether it be instantly, or after the fact. You give people time to process. Kids process grief differently, so allow them to share their emotions with you. Just do life with these people. If it means attending a candlelight vigil, even though you do not know the kids, by all means, go. This sort of stuff brings communities together, so come together as a community and again do life together. I know back when I lived in Lindenhurst, IL there was a really bad wreck that killed a girl that attended my high school. One night shortly after that, the community got together and each got a lantern. we lit it, and let it fly. That is just an example.
Now comes the challenging part, if you live further away you pray for those who were affected. On both sides of the equation. Try to send a prayer of forgiveness on behalf of the person who went into that high school and shot it up. I know I am having trouble just absorbing what happened in, even when I knew it was going on about 10 times worse, and further away before I moved. That is why I am writing right now. To get out the emotions about this. If you read this blog regularly, you already know I try to avoid politics at all costs. If you are just finding this blog, I do not usually write about stuff this heavy, unless it is in my mind, and I have to have a word dump onto a sheet of paper. I know it is easier to pray for those who got hurt during that horrible shooting, but don't forget about the person whose life is about to change, hopefully for the better. He is about to be probably incarcerated for a while so he will have time to think about what he has done. The lives he ruined, probably in a split second of rage. Even though he is a murder, his life can still change, so pray for him.
_________________________________________
If you take anything from this article take this, Jesus, as he was dying for us, said this: "Father Forgive them. They know not what they do." So that we can be accepted by the father in return. There is still time to turn to God because He is the one that can fix this broken world. God and only God can fix this sin problem.
_____________________________________
Luke 23: 34
And Jesus said, "Father forgive them, for they do not know what they do." (ESV)
At times like these, my mind instantly turns to Luke 23: 34, which is stated above. Just to give you all a little bit of context, this is taking place as Jesus is on the cross. Just below him, the Romans were below him casting lots for his bloody garments. He just got flogged 39 times (the most that one could get flogged and survive), nails were driven through his hands and feet, wearing a crown of thorns. He had been mocked and carried his cross up to skull mountain, just outside of Rome. All of this, and he still called out "Forgive them" as he was dying (Italicized to emphasize). This is something to keep in mind as I move forward with this article.
_______________________________________
Unless you live under a rock, you might have heard about the shooting at Parkland High School. According to reports, up to 18 kids were killed. Some kid that got expelled went back into the school and shot it up. There is nothing you can do to prepare yourself for it: that is until after it happens.
All this preparing is well and good, but what happens after is what matters. We could either go about it like baby's and use it to push our own political agendas, we can lock up our kids in the house because we are scared for them, or we can say "sending good vibes to the families of the victims." I guess most of these things are good things.
The one thing that I feel like we should not do until at least the primary investigation of the shooting takes place is push politics on it. When I was scrolling through my twitter feed, the first several tweets were political. I mean what the heck man. 18 kids just died and you push politics on it (Just 1 or 2 more paragraphs of ranting and I will get to the point of this article).
What is wrong with this picture? Number one: You are not giving family's the time to mourn, Number two: Interviewing kids as they just escaped so you can get a "real reaction" (all news networks. That's right. I just called you out), Number three: You need to hear both sides (Victims families, and the Shooters family) of the story before you push politics. (Bear with me this article is not just politics and anger).
We need to figure out a way to look past the politics of the situation and fix our eyes on the greater whole. I know that this can be difficult, and seem kind of corny, but we need to understand that we live in a fallen world. So I am going to say this: We do not have a gun problem. We do not have a people problem. We have a Sin Problem. The very sin that pushed Jesus on the cross.
So, to try and bring things together. We do need to change something in our lives but not the all the new gun control policy garbage because that will not change anything. The first murder in the bible was something other than a gun. Wheather it is Cains hands, a stone, etc. But it was not a gun. So stop blaming guns. It is not a problem with just the person. It is a sin problem. We can try and talk about solutions to at least limiting Gun violence, but what happens next, after we abolish guns. Do we abolish forks, knives, pencils, pens, scissors, or pretty much anything that humans touch? (Political high horse dismounted).
But now, it happened, so what can we do? Instead of muttering curses at each other, pushing politics, and unfollowing people, sending "good vibes". Take time to think of what you can do in the now.
If you live in the area where this occurred, you love the people that were affected whether it be instantly, or after the fact. You give people time to process. Kids process grief differently, so allow them to share their emotions with you. Just do life with these people. If it means attending a candlelight vigil, even though you do not know the kids, by all means, go. This sort of stuff brings communities together, so come together as a community and again do life together. I know back when I lived in Lindenhurst, IL there was a really bad wreck that killed a girl that attended my high school. One night shortly after that, the community got together and each got a lantern. we lit it, and let it fly. That is just an example.
Now comes the challenging part, if you live further away you pray for those who were affected. On both sides of the equation. Try to send a prayer of forgiveness on behalf of the person who went into that high school and shot it up. I know I am having trouble just absorbing what happened in, even when I knew it was going on about 10 times worse, and further away before I moved. That is why I am writing right now. To get out the emotions about this. If you read this blog regularly, you already know I try to avoid politics at all costs. If you are just finding this blog, I do not usually write about stuff this heavy, unless it is in my mind, and I have to have a word dump onto a sheet of paper. I know it is easier to pray for those who got hurt during that horrible shooting, but don't forget about the person whose life is about to change, hopefully for the better. He is about to be probably incarcerated for a while so he will have time to think about what he has done. The lives he ruined, probably in a split second of rage. Even though he is a murder, his life can still change, so pray for him.
_________________________________________
If you take anything from this article take this, Jesus, as he was dying for us, said this: "Father Forgive them. They know not what they do." So that we can be accepted by the father in return. There is still time to turn to God because He is the one that can fix this broken world. God and only God can fix this sin problem.