AMISH SCHOOL SHOOTING - Photos By NY Times and Telegraph (UK)
Where can you go to be "safe" anymore? Is there any way to live an anonymous life in regard to the world or situations around us? Can anything be totally private?
I grew up in northeastern Ohio among the Amish communities. A horse and buggy were familiar sights as well as the folk who used them. When you pass them on the road, they look and wave. Many times there would be small children in the buggy who would turn around and look at you. On a rare occasion, you would see children (alone) in the front seat commanding the horse!
The Amish are very friendly, but keep to themselves. We had the pleasure of knowing a few Amish families personally, including "Dan", who my parents planned on having build a home for them (BTW- it was never built because the land they purchased had been "fill" and would not hold a house- they eventually sold the land). The Amish are great builders, though! Have you ever seen a barn raising or Amish furniture? If you haven't, it's very impressive. I remember being out at Dan's farm quite a few times and what struck me were the Amish children. Those kids were hard working... and mischievous! I remember one of his little boys climbing the huge windmill in their yard - clear to the top!
Pacifists by nature, The Amish do not believe in violence of any kind. They have formed entire communities where they don't have to interact with the outside world or be corrupted by it. For those reasons, I found it very disturbing and ironic that there was a school shooting in an Amish one room school house a few days ago in Pennsylvania. The very thing that they strive to keep from their society has affected them personally. My heart goes out to the families and the children touched by this heinous event.
The questions started rolling through my mind... "Hasn't the Bible shown us to be in the world, but not of the world? How far should we take that? What does that mean?" or "Why do certain people get angry at God when tragedy strikes?" or "Why do God fearing people sometimes act like they don't know what to do in crisis? Have they failed to put on their spiritual armor? Do they really have faith?"
I got to thinking, however, about fear... fear of what could happen... fear of things outside of our control... fear of hurt- especially when it involves our children. Fear is really a selfish emotion. It places all the focus on you, you, you. Fear makes people do funny things and see things that they shouldn't. The enemy loves to attack minds with fear! God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of love, peace, and a sound mind. We shouldn't put our confidence in institutions, in our own attempts to keep ourselves safe, or in anything other than God. We MUST put our confidence in God and trust that He is in control of every aspect of our lives - including our children. If we truly believe this, then the devil can't use situations like this to control us.
We can spend our whole lives (maybe not the extent of the Amish) to protect ourselves, keep our information private, and not be affected by the world around us, but it doesn't work. There are still credit card numbers stolen, identity thefts, crimes against persons, school shootings and a whole string of other things. And yes, "bad" things happen to Christians! When they do, He is right there to walk in the midst of the fire with us (read the book of Daniel and the story of the 3 Hebrew children). The only place to be "safe" is in the center of God's will, by being actively involved in a relationship with the Lord.
Are you fear- motivated by how you handle situations in life? Do you let "bad things that happen to good people" affect you negatively? If you do there is hope!
Let your mind be renewed today in Christ. He can transform the old ways of thinking into life! Don't be bound by fear- God doesn't want you there. Pray for deliverance and faith, feed your mind with the Word, and place your confidence in Him. He has a plan for you and nothing that happens to you is a surprise to Him- not even the "bad" stuff.
Verses for Thought: Proverbs 12:25, Matthew 6:32-34, Philippians 4:6-7, Hebrews 13:6, 1 Peter 5:7, Joshua 1:5-9, Psalm 34:4, Isaiah 41:10, 2 Timothy 1:7
You have nothing to fear if you are a child of God!
