A Prayer of Lament
I lament.
In the wake of another school shooting, I lament.
I lament 17 lost lives.
I lament their families
their community
their classmates
their living memory of the dead.
I lament shooters.
I lament the loss of family so young
the absence of community ‘round him
the lack of realized love in his life.
Sunday marked yet ANOTHER mass killing here in the United States – resulting in the largest number of deaths to date, when Omar Mateen opened fire on Pulse, a night club established for the LGBTQ community.
Each week it seems we wake to another mass shooting and another threat of terror somewhere on the globe that feels all to close to home. We shrink back at the news of viruses and illnesses seemingly capable of wiping out larger portions of the population. And then there are the often unpredictable natural disasters that lurk beneath and above us waiting to catch us off guard.
There has been and always will be plenty to fear. Perhaps this is why God often attempts to comfort those who follow him with the charge, “Do not be afraid.”