What we Continue to Lose

 Another day in these United States of America.  Another mass shooting.  More are coming.  Assault weapons have already been purchased and are in possession by those who will one day repeat the carnage that happened in Texas yesterday.  One thing seems certain.  You do not need to actually practice shooting an assault weapon.  Just load, point, shoot and reload.  Someone is planning another event, even as I type this.  I may even be one of the victims of a future assault.

Through all the carnage, and emotional pain being inflicted, we forget all that we are losing and have lost.  The loss goes beyond the individual lives.  It goes beyond the loss and heartbreak felt forever in families. We are losing people who would have made an impact in this world.  Much of that impact would have been of a positive nature.

Pause to reflect on this.  All of these victims of violence had God given gifts that would have been a benefit to others and possibly to all of us.  We have lost people who were given the God given gift to create a cure for Cancer.  We have lost peacemakers, those desperately needed to calm communities and countries from engaging in various forms of violent conflict.  We have lost people who would have contributed to charities and done the work to ease the pain of people in this world.  A world slowly moving towards its end.  We have lost those who would have entertained us and made us laugh. 

And what have we gained?  We have gained added feelings of loss of security.  We understand that a simple daily task or function could lead to our human death.  We have gained added mistrust in our government to take action to reduce the chances of a mass shooting occurring. We have inched closer to the creation of conditions where life will no longer be allowed to exist on this planet.

What can we do to turn conditions towards the positive?  We can reject the ways of this world.  We can seek the ways of our Creator and be what we were meant to be.  We were made to fellowship with God.  We were made to love each other in fellowship, regardless of the color of our skin and other physical differences.  All of us will not commit to that goal.  But as each mass shooting happens, if you have not committed to living a life with God, you are given another reminder to do so.  From the violence can come a new commitment.  An action to turn your life around.  What do you have to lose?