This week, as I was thinking about what our message for the week would be, tragedy struck just 11 miles south of my office in Lapeer. On Tuesday, a 15-year-old student shot 11 people in his school, ultimately taking the lives of four of his classmates.
This tragedy has left families with an overwhelming sense of loss, a school community paralyzed by fear and the rest of us left to wonder if something like that could happen here (wherever “here” is). And if it could, what must we do to stop it?
For the last several months, our messages have centered on the life and ministry of Christ. Our goal is to learn about the character of God in the witness of Christ. With that in mind, we often ask the question, “how should Christians think/act/respond” to a specific circumstance? In other words, how do we live up to the command to be salt and light in this world?
This week, you undoubtedly discussed the tragedy at Oxford High School with your parents, teachers and classmates. Many of you are probably fearful, uneasy, confused and perhaps even angry. Those are all perfectly normal reactions to such a galling act of violence. But there’s another reaction that, ultimately, sits at the core of what it means to be a Christian — how can we help?
The truth is, this was a tragedy before the first shot was fired. This young man did not believe his life had value and, consequently, lashed out with violence. Just days prior to the massacre, an observant teacher noticed something written in his notebook: “my life is useless.”
We can do something about this.
In almost every case of school violence, we find that the perpetrator is desperate for affirmation, friendship, identity and belonging; It may be a student who is struggling to cope with loss, or with a toxic home life; maybe it’s the student who hates going to school because of incessant bullying; maybe it’s the bully. Whatever the case, as Christians we are commanded to do right even to those who do wrong.
In Psalms 34 it is written:
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted;
he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.
And so it is with us, the followers of Christ.
This means different things to different people, but what it might mean for you is to step out of your comfort zone; It might mean offering a hand of friendship to someone who desperately needs it; it might mean a word of encouragement that can turn someone’s day around; it might be something as simple as taking an interest in someone who thinks they don’t matter — someone who thinks their life is useless.
As Christians, we believe that all people are made in the image of God. Consequently, how we treat others should be a direct reflection of this fundamental belief.
With that in mind, let us approach every day with a renewed sense of purpose; Let us seek out opportunities to be salt in light in classrooms and hallways; Let us not keep our distance from the brokenhearted.
At a time when we are all clamoring for a solution to the spate of violence in our schools, I only know of one: Look after one another; Don’t be the one to look the other way; Be the light that darkness cannot overcome.
The Pipe 