Yesterdays news of two major school massacres rocked the hearts of people and parents around the world. The school shooting in Connecticut which, from reports I've heard has left 20 children and 6 adults dead and the school stabbing in China, which left 15 students dead and one adult wounded. These are horrible events that leave good people everywhere in shock. We want to be able to do something. And we ask "Why!?". Let me address the "why?" first and that may, if I'm capable, bolster support and understanding for the "what to do" part. In either case I feel that I may just be preaching to the choir, but the choir didn't get there because they knew all the songs, so I'll continue.
Why do tragic events such as these occur? The answer is more simple than we want to believe and that disbelief is frankly the reason they are becoming more common place. Mankind is evil. We are broken (Romans 3:10-19).
The further a society strays from love and respect for its Creator the further the darkness of our souls goes on display. And contrary to popular belief this starts in the church and leaches outward to secular society. Where there is national/sociatal fault it starts with the church corpus. I hope to delve into this in the future, but not here. In sum, until this world is redeemed depraved individuals will do harm. No law will prevent them, no government can protect us from them. Which leads us to "what to do".
As is normal among people who look to their government for salvation there are cries to remove firearms from those who haven't and won't use them for evil. It is, of course reactionary and straight up foolishness. The murders at the school in Henan, China are proof that man is evil even without firearms. I know that is shocking to some.
First on the "what do we do" list is to understand that evil happens while still in the realm of Gods sovereignty. Better men than me have tried to explain that and I'll leave that to them. I've seen it evidenced in my life and know it to be true.
So evil happens, God is sovereign. Now what? We do what we can to protect ourselves. I know what I say next are simple answers to difficult problems but nobody that has the direct power to make these changes is reading this anyway. And what I'll say generally had already been said by others. Now what I propose we do:We allow teachers to be armed. We don't force them but allow those that wish to arm themselves to do so. We trust our childrens education and minds to them, why not their protection?
We choose to spend our time and money at places that allow us to arm ourselves. The old saw "Gun free zones are a target rich environment" has proven itself true. Either don't give Gun Free Zone stores, malls and theaters your business or don't bother to inform them that you ignore their signs. And this is assuming of course, that you have chosen to arm yourself for your families protection. It is a deeply personal decision that should not be taken lightly. I have no contempt for those who have carefully considered and decided against arming themselves, but only for those who would take that right away. I believe in trusting God and doing my part. That fleshed itself out in having life, health and auto insurance and a Glock 19.
As with anything I say or blog I'd be willing to discuss it further with anybody who asked.
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