By now you’ve probably heard of the shootings at Umpqua Community College in Oregon, but there are a few details of this incident that you may have not heard. Evidence indicates that the gunman had an anti-Christian bias. Witnesses reported the gunman asked his victims about their faith. If they confessed to being Christians, he shot them in the head. Those who didn’t answer were shot in the leg.
One victim, Chris Mintz, was shot multiple times. In a heroic effort to eliminate the threat to fellow students, this Army veteran stepped into harm’s way and charged the shooter. Even though he was shot in the upper back, left hand, abdomen, and both legs, Mintz survived.
While lying on the floor, Mintz said: “It’s my son’s birthday today,” and the gunman shot him again.
Whenever you hear another news report about this incident, I encourage you to do three things:
- Remember to pray for the full and complete recovery of Chris Mintz and the other victims.
- Take a moment to pray for the grieving families of those who died.
- Reflect on the words of Romans 8:
Do you think anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ’s love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins listed in Scripture: “They kill us in cold blood because they hate you. We’re sitting ducks; they pick us off one by one.”
None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I’m absolutely convinced that nothing—nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable—absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us. ~Romans 8 (The Message)
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