I woke up this morning to news of yet another fatal shooting in our country, this time at the Empire State Building in New York City. In the past few weeks, there have been horrific shootings in Colorado, Wisconsin, Texas, Washington D.C., and now New York. Within the past year, there was also a mass shooting in my hometown of Carson City, Nevada. Every time these unfortunate events take place, we ask the question, “Why?”
I cannot answer that why question, other than to reaffirm that the Bible says that humankind’s sin has brought disorder into our world. I also know that the Bible states that these events will continue until Jesus comes again. In fact, it seems probable that the “wars and rumors or wars,” and violence will intensify as time goes on.
Many will ask the question, “What is the cause of this increased violence, and how can we stop it?” People will point to many culprits. It’s worry over a troubled economy. It’s hopelessness over our political landscape. It’s the result of callous, dehumanizing violence in video games, cartoons, and movies. It’s the result of a de-sensitzing media. It’s the result of incivility in our culture. All of these answers could be explanations to the shootings. We may never know.
I am raising two young children in today’s world. I worry about the world in which they will live in twenty or thirty years. What world will my grandkids, or great grandkids live in? Will it be a world in which violence is commonplace? Will people become so de-sensitized to violence that news of shootings like we hear now will be ignored or treated with disdain? Will they avoid speaking to neighbors for fear of violence, or ridicule, or uncivil speech?
I know that God is sovereign. He has knowledge of all things, and knows the future, and what our world will look like in the years ahead. And He is in complete control. He is all powerful. He is not the author of evil, and He will even work through the present evil for ultimate good (see Genesis 50:19-20, Isaiah 10, Acts 2:22-34).
We, though, are responsible for our actions. We are accountable for those things we do that are just and unjust. As such, we can make a difference in our present world. I am just one person. It is unlikely that I can change the world. But, I can change the dynamic of my family. You, too, are just one person. But, if we choose to make positive changes in our lives and the lives of our families, we could leave this world a somewhat better place. How can we change our speech so that what we say is exhorting, rather than crippling? How can we leave a legacy of hope in an age of hopelessness? How can we change the tenor of incivility in our cultural rhetoric? It’s worth contemplating answers to these questions, and it’s worth making real efforts to change the dynamic in our lives.
