The events this past weekend in Orlando were horrific. On Friday evening, a young woman, Christina Grimmie was brutally murdered by a man named Kevin James Loibl. I had never heard of either of them before the news reported the tragedy on Saturday. And then to wake up Sunday morning to the news of 50 men and women who had lost their lives in a nightclub shooting was just overwhelming and numbing. But I don't want to be numb towards these events or any other events where injustice is done. I want to read through the names and see the faces of those who have been hurt and killed and I want to pray for those still alive and for their families and friends. I want to really feel for them. I know I cannot fully understand their pain but I want to empathize with them.
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| Stanley Almodovar III, Luis Vielma, Luis Omar Ocasio-Capo, Kimberly Morris, Edward Sotomayor Jr.Five of the 50 Orlando nigbtclub victims - copied from NBC News |
But quite honestly, it is easier for me to be numb or even desensitized towards these acts of evil and violence than it is to feel the raw pain of knowing that evil is real. Some people take whatever means of harm they can find and inflict hurt, suffering and death upon others. Lives of families, friends, and the victims are forever changed and scarred. Those inflicting pain are mean and hateful. They deserve to die is my first thought. And then . . . then I remember. I remember that we are all created in the image of God. We are all designed to worship Him. But there are some who do not know Him. They are deceived into thinking that life without God is real life. That death and destruction is the true calling of the human heart. But God . . . He commends His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8.
Those who killed and were killed . . . Christ died for them. And God's heart must be broken over the many refuse to accept His free gift of grace. And God's heart must be broken when those who have accepted His free gift of grace, refuse to see people as God sees them. I am guilty of judging others and deciding in my own mind who "deserves" the free gift of grace and who doesn't. And God's heart breaks because I choose to chase my own way rather than His.
My heart breaks for those affected by the murders in Orlando. My heart hurts for two young men's families who been affected because their sons/brothers took the lives of so many and then their own lives as well. I am not excusing the evil. I am heartbroken that people lost their lives. People created in the very image of God. People who are sinners, sinners like you and me, who need a Savior.
God - break my heart for what breaks Yours. May I be diligent to share Christ with everyone until You tell me to stop. Amen.
