For a Reason

God wants us to be good stewards of the gifts that He has provided for us.  One of those gifts is life
itself. Ephesians 5 states:
15 See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise,
16 redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
17 Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

He is the giver of life, and He wants to teach us and move through us so that our lives reflect His glory and His truth.  We are called to make the best use of our time and pursue His will.  He has a purpose for each of our lives, and as we are devoted to fulfilling it, we can know that we have access to His power in order to bring that to pass.  He is loving and gracious, and has great things in store for the people who have called upon His name.

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We can be reminded that life is temporary, and the days we are given on earth are intended to be used
for the glory of God. James chapter 4 states:
12 There is one Lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you to judge another?
13 Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit";
14 whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.
15 Instead you ought to say, "If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that."

Every day is a gift from God, and if you're here, you can recognize that and acknowledge the hand of God.  He has a purpose for you - here and now!

In times of tragedy, we not only reflect on and honor those who have lost their lives, but we can also be encouraged by the survival stories.  It's not up to us to determine why God chose to spare some, but we can trust in Him that there is a reason.

The 20th anniversary of the Columbine shooting was commemorated on April 20 of this year.  Perhaps you have heard the stories of Cassie Bernall or Rachel Joy Scott, who perished at the hands of the shooters, presumably because of their faith in Christ.

Rachel's brother, Craig, survived.  His story is told in the new documentary series, After Columbine, which has been released by Pure Flix.  Billy Hallowell of Pure Flix Insider wrote a piece that was posted on the Faithwire website. 

Craig Scott and Evan Todd are part of the series.  According to the article, Craig recalls being in the school library, hearing popping sounds, and being told by a teacher to hide:

“I asked God to take away my fear, because I literally felt like my heart was going to stop beating, and in that moment I felt relief from my fear,” he said, noting that he experienced something profound in that moment. “About a minute later I heard a voice speak to me and told me ‘Get out of there.’”

Craig had noticed the shooters had left, so, as the story recounts, he "stood up and yelled for everyone to exit the library."  Scott said, “If I didn’t listen to that voice, I think more of us would have been killed..." The shooters re-entered the library after students had left.

The article also states:

Todd, who was also in the library that morning, recalled praying during the attack, asking God to help him survive the ordeal.

“I was praying to God to let me live, to end … what was happening,” he said, noting that the shooters confronted and threatened to kill him.

Evan Todd was asked by one of the shooters why they shouldn't take his life.  The article says that, "Todd responded that he had always been good to people at the school, and for some reason the shooters spared his life and left the library; he was the last person to speak to them."  He related, “Something happened in that moment that I still believe to this day wasn’t my words,” adding, “It was something greater, more powerful.”

In the wake of another mass shooting, this time at another synagogue in America, we can ask some very important questions in this dangerous world: Why do we survive?  Why are we here?  If our lives have been preserved, then we have to attribute that to the hand of God.  So, grateful for our lives, we have to be convinced of God's purpose.  Every day is a gift, and we can live to the glory of God.

In the aftermath of the senseless taking of the lives of others, we can certainly grieve for those lost without bitterness.  And, we can rejoice in those saved without pride.  Survival is not a virtue, it is an undeserved benefit.  We can be challenged to make the most of it.

When we do face danger in our lives, whether it be the physical, emotional, or spiritual, we can remember that in the heat of the moment, we can be committed to prayer.  We can be so conditioned to communing with God that we will cry out to Him in the midst of our struggles.