Prayer first, but not only…

Once again, we Americans find ourselves reeling in the wake of yet another mass shooting.

Once again, Christians like myself offer up our heartfelt prayers to a God we know exists and who we know is listening.

The problem, however, is that non-Christians are growing increasingly tired of our prayers void of any action, particularly by those professing Christians who are in positions where they have the power to actually take action to address gun violence. Simply offering up our prayers while nothing changes to address the underlying issues has become infuriating to many, and I honestly can’t begrudge how they’re feeling. Something has to change!

Because I’m a pastor and I believe in the power of prayer, I’m convinced that it should represent the first response of the Christian in the wake of such tragedies. Too often we make prayer an afterthought or regard it as the least we can do, but that approach strips prayer of its power by making it a non-essential part of the Christian life. Prayer is an absolute gift, where God Almighty grants us access to His throne and invites us to boldly approach it with our petitions. He desires that we intercede on behalf of others, and although He doesn’t always answer our prayers as we would like, I do believe that He always answers them for the best (even if we can’t see it at the time). So I absolutely believe we need to keep on praying and making it our first priority.

However, if all we do is pray and then move on with our lives until the next tragedy strikes (which likely won’t be too long, given how commonplace these things have become in our country) will anything really change? Because I believe in the power of prayer, I absolutely believe that God can intercede in any situation, and that there are times when He does so, even if it often goes unnoticed by the majority. While God is indeed all powerful, in His great love He granted us the authority to rule on the earth (Genesis 1:28). Therefore, He expects us to take that responsibility seriously in not only caring for our earth (His creation), but also in caring for one another (His creatures). I think the words of the Matthew West song, “Do Something,” say it perfectly when he sings, “So I shook my fist at heaven and said, ‘God, why don’t You do something?’ He (God) said, ‘I did…I created you!'” When we allow gun violence to rage on unchecked while we simply offer up our prayers, we neglect our responsibility to truly step into our role as caretakers of creation which we were created to be. It’s then no wonder that people begin to question God’s care for us as a result, or His very existence altogether, because of His perceived indifference or His failure to intercede. Again, my point here is not to advocate against prayer first, but simply to say that it shouldn’t be prayer only.

So what then can/should we do in response to tragedies like Sandy Hook, Vegas, etc., etc., etc.?

Again, first we need to pray. But when we do so we can’t just offer up rote prayers like “Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy. Lord, have mercy” and call it good. We need to actually intercede with our prayers and be specific! First and foremost we need to pray for those who have been affected by these atrocious acts, and ask that God would come alongside and comfort them in the midst of their unimaginable grief. But we can’t stop there! We need to get at the root cause and be praying for those who are contemplating committing such evil acts. We need to be praying that the Holy Spirit would intercede in their lives and soften their hardened hearts so that they would begin to see the lives of their fellow human beings as sacred. And not only that, but that the Spirit would likewise help them to see themselves as sacred and to let go of the self-hatred that so often seems to be at the core of their identities. But again, we can’t stop there! Because the devil continues to rage and there will always be those who follow his lead in pursuing wickedness, we also need to be praying for those who have been elected to positions of power in our country. While it’s great that they pray, they definitely can’t leave it at that as they have been given the responsibility to enact laws to keep us safe. We Christians need to call on those representatives who likewise claim the name of Jesus to take seriously their God-given responsibility to speak on behalf of the voiceless and to act on behalf of the powerless. If there’s any hope of change it’s going to require Christians, who make up much of these representatives’ constituencies, to step up and declare this to no longer be acceptable in our country.

Now I get it, there’s the whole 2nd Amendment argument that can be raised, and I honestly have no problem with people owning guns to be used for hunting or to protect themselves and their families in this crazy world. What I have a problem with is ordinary citizens having access to military-grade semiautomatic weapons. There simply is no need for anyone other than our law enforcement or military personnel to have access to those weapons. Plus, with the prevalence of mental illness in our society, there likewise needs to be a more stringent vetting process for those who are able to purchase firearms in the first place. While neither of those measures will eradicate gun violence, I do believe they’ll greatly decrease the frequency of such attacks. While those both seem like no-brainers to me, I don’t pretend to have the answers to solving this problem. What I do know is that something has to change or countless lives will continue to be lost to senseless and meaningless evil. The fact that there isn’t already bi-partisan agreement and cooperation on addressing this issue is baffling to say the least. The massacre of innocent children in Newtown absolutely should have been the impetus for change. It wasn’t! Now it’s sounding like the deadliest mass shooting in modern American history will also cause little more than a ripple. What will it take to wake us up?!

The goal of every generation should be to leave the world in better shape for the next generation. We’re clearly failing big time in that department! Like Jesus entering Jerusalem and weeping over it, I truly believe that He weeps over our nation as we continue to become divided and commit violence against one another. I’d imagine it’s especially troubling to Him that we’ve become so numb to such egregious events that we can simply forge ahead seemingly unaffected. As a father of 3 small children, however, I refuse to become desensitized because doing so would hinder my ability to fight for a better future for them. I desire nothing more than for my kids to grow up in a world where evil is not an everyday occurrence. Obviously it’s unavoidable to some extent in this broken world, and yet not to the extent at which it’s currently happening. Fortunately for Marisa and me, our kids are still little enough where they are blissfully unaware of events like what just took place in Vegas, and we’re happy to allow them to remain so for now in order to preserve their innocence. However, the day is quickly approaching when we’ll no longer be able to shield them from such things, and I can only imagine the fear that that will introduce into their little hearts. As these events become more commonplace, schools are needing to prepare students for active-shooter scenarios lest, God forbid, that ever takes place in our schools. But if we stay on our current trajectory as a nation with no action to reverse it, then I fear that at some point this type of tragedy will hit close to home for each and every one of us.

Friends, this has simply been my humble attempt to engage in this conversation, which I feel compelled to do not only as a pastor and a Jesus follower, but also as a father and as one who loves this great nation. We can do so much better than this because we are so much better than this! Although we may no longer be classified as a Christian nation, I still hold to the belief that we are one nation, under God. As such, I will continue to make prayer my first priority rather than a last resort. In addition to praying, I’m convinced the other thing we must do as followers of Jesus is to love others, just as He called us to do. When we let His light shine through us I truly believe the darkness will be held at bay. It may sound simplistic, but who knows how many hardened hearts could be softened simply by our smiles, and how many potential future tragedies could be averted by us reaching out to broken people with the love of Jesus? Finally, if we truly want to leave a better nation for the next generation, we must keep fighting for improved legislation. May God grant us the wisdom, courage and compassion to put our self interests aside and strive to do what is right, especially for the little ones in our lives.