It's a Heart Problem

  Let me preface this piece by saying that I do not in any way, shape, or form condone the shootings that have recently taken place. There is no reason that anyone should kill a bunch of innocent people in a Walmart or a concert or a popular spot downtown or anywhere. None of that is okay. Killing or raping or stealing from people is not okay. Do you know what else isn't okay, though? Blaming the wrong thing. Scapegoating. Pushing an agenda.

  But that is exactly what's happening. There is so much "his fault her fault, guns are bad, white supremacy, leaders do nothing" going on that very few people are seeing the situation for what it actually is. Yes, past decisions affect what will happen in the future. That's how it is with everything. Certain politicians don't respond to things like this in the most gracious fashion. Twitter sucks. Many people jump into conversations armed only with emotions, not facts. Families and friendships can fall apart because of this. 

  The real problem here is in every person's heart.

  As much as we would all like to believe that laws and fences and TED talks are gonna curb crime and bad decisions, the reality is that if a person truly has their heart and mind set on something, nothing is going to stand in their way. Columbine, 9/11, the Pulse shooting, Vegas, El Paso, and Dayton all have something in common: someone let evil win in their heart.

  It's seriously that simple. I know we all want an answer and a solution to the senseless violence that plagues our world. It's all over, not just in the USA. Remember the Paris massacre a few years ago? How about Sri Lanka this Easter? New Zealand in March? What about the regular murders in Mexico and other drug ridden countries or the beheadings in the Middle East because of religion? Or the Rwandan genocide back in the 1990s? We can't forget about the multitude of individual serial killers and rapists, thieves and abusers whose weapons range from guns to knives, rope to date rape drugs, computers or even their own fists and words. It's not what is used, but who uses it. The problem is in their heart.

  Certainly, there are many people who have committed crimes or killed people who are mentally ill, and so were not completely in control of their actions. But that isn't everyone. Many of these people have let hate, greed, and anger make a home in their hearts, and so their decisions and actions are tainted. The actions become evil. We all have those battles within us. So many decisions we make will end in either good or evil. Right or wrong. 

  No law or background check or curfew or sign on a door or road block of any sort will change a person's heart. I wish they could. I wish that Congress or the President or the UN could actually do something to fix evil. But they can't. The only "fix" comes on an individual basis. The "fix" starts with us. Change will happen when we all look inward and go to our knees begging God to transfigure our hearts toward good. Change will happen when we pray for every hardened heart to soften. For every hurt to be healed. Change will happen when we all allow the Lord to work in our hearts.

  Nobody wants to admit it, but all of us come up against the same source of evil that the people who commit crimes do. It's part of being human and having the gift of free will. We often hear family and friends of the shooters say they had no idea they were capable of the things they did. Well, the shooters probably didn't, either, until it was too late. 

  

We can't change what has happened, and it is becoming increasingly apparent that any parameters in place won't always work. However, we can change the future. We can all pray that every potential school shooter and potential rapist allow God to change their hearts before they walk through the door with a loaded gun or before they drop a pill into someone's drink. We can pray that we stop ourselves from being the next link in a chain of gossip or that we have the honor to get a ride from the bar instead of driving drunk. We can help create a culture of good by starting within ourselves, because it's not a gun problem. It's not a policy problem. It's not a racial problem. It's not even a religion problem. It's a heart problem, where the battle of good and evil rages on.