Ft. Hood And Loving Your Enemy

No, I am not going to write about loving the Fort Hood shooter.

Today, a service of memory is being held for the victims of the shooter. Personally, I don't think the shooter should be further enlarged by ongoing public discussions about why he did what he did and what it all means. I hope a thorough, fair investigation will address those issues.

What I am taking away from this tragedy is reinforcement on why loving your enemy is a better way. Jesus always knows what He is talking about.

At any given point in time, we may be someone's enemy. If our society embraces a credo that says we can harm our enemies at will, aren't we opening ourselves to ongoing injury from someone we have offended, or someone who believes we have offended them, or perhaps someone who just lives in a state of offense and always feels injured?

As a younger person, I believed it was a sign of weakness to love an enemy. Now, I know you can confront someone in love. You may or may not challenge them in a way that leads to a change their behavior, but you can always act from love. The alternative is to live in a state of rage and to continually invite someone else's state of rage into your life.

Who would be left standing if we all accepted the idea that it's OK to kill someone you hate, that it's OK to destroy those who have offended you?

Comments

sweetdreams said…
Only Kingdom folks can love their enemies and as you pointed out it may not change the behavior of the enemy, but it changes ours, which is enough.
Deborah Evans said…
Thanks for your comments, sweetdreams.

You have said an important thing: changing our behavior is enough. Our lives should be the proof of the truth of the gospel.

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