On May 27th, 2022, Executive Director Lance Finley wrote “We find ourselves in a sad, all too familiar place this week. Mindless violence, bloodshed, and horrific loss of life.” The context was regarding the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, where a gunman took the lives of 22 elementary school children and teachers. A little over a week before, on May 14th, another gunman walked into a grocery store, killing 10. Between those days, 3 other school shootings took place in the United States, one in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, one in Hammond, Louisiana, and another in Kentwood, Michigan for a total of 7 deaths. That means for 3 consecutive Friday’s we could have run the same headline: Here We Are Again
Between May 27th, 2022, and this week, September 12, 2024, there have been 132 weeks, and in that timespan there have been at least 128 school shootings (provided we include Universities and Colleges in the data). In over two years, the United States had only 4 weeks with no school shootings. For over two years, we could have run the same headline: Here We Are Again
That kind of pessimism (or sarcastic realism) is something like what the satirical “news” site, The Onion often publishes. Every time one of these school shootings breaks the headlines, The Onion posts the same article, changing only a few details, titled: “‘No Way To Prevent This,’ Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens”.
We don’t want that kind of pessimism to be our knee jerk response to tragedy, nor do we want to be kowtowed into silence. Many of us have personal opinions about what might move the needle on gun violence (or violence in general) in the United States but our job here at the CGGC isn't to change political discourse, but to help our churches, missions, and auxiliary organizations make an impact for the Kingdom. We believe in a God of hope, who calls us to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly.
So, to our pastors, church leaders, and ministry partners, we humbly say: The people in your community are probably scared or numb, and maybe both. Many schools started this month and already in September there have been 4 school shootings.
If the statistics are predictive, we’ll probably have another school shooting next week. The odds-on favor are that some kid is going to shoot another kid. At least one kid is going to be injured and there’s a greater than 70% chance that someone will die.
Pastors, please, pray with your congregations for the safety of our schools. Maybe you’ve already done a prayer walk around the school, or through the town. Can you do it again? Will you pray with the teachers in your school who put on brave faces in front of their students when things like this happen? Will you pray that the Lord reveals to you a strategy to be a resource for schools, as tutors, caregivers, volunteers, and mentors to kids who might become a harm to themselves and others?
Youth leaders, will you pray over your youth for their safety, and mental health? Will you pray that God will give you eyes to see, and ears to hear when a student is struggling with their own thoughts of violence? Will you pray that God will give you discernment to contact the appropriate people to provide the necessary help when a kid talks about doing violence?
Elders, deacons, trustees, and everyone else, will you add students, teachers, faculty and staff to your prayer lists and prayer chains? Will you see your local schools as places where your church can have the largest impact for God’s kingdom? For the Lord tells us that “the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”
Churches, will you, like Jesus our Lord and Savior, call the little children to you, placing your hands on them, praying for them?
CGGC eNews—Vol. 18, No. 38
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