No one likes tragedy and heartache. We all want to protect our children and our loved ones. What happened in Nashville on March 27, 2023 was devastating. As I scroll social media, I find myself jumping on the bandwagon and pointing fingers. “If we did this…” “If our leaders would do this….” “If our schools would do that…”

It’s so easy. It’s so easy to quickly pass the blame. We’re scared, we want this to stop, we want to protect our most vulnerable, we want justice, we want someone to pay. While I was out driving today, the Lord convicted my heart. My heart was so angry at people for allowing this to happen. Anyone and everyone was to blame. Then my phone lost reception and I had to sit in silence while I waited for my music to return. In that silence the Lord showed me the culprit and the remedy.

The culprit to the tragedies that happen is not the guns, not the politicians, and not the media. The culprit is sin. Sin has done what it knows to do. It separates us from a perfect, holy God. It severs relationships, destroys families, and brings death. As much as I want to blame others for the tragedy on Monday, we only have one person to blame….the shooter. She allowed sin to penetrate her life. She chose to reject the love and salvation God offers. When we reject God, we embrace sin. When we embrace sin, we are not capable of loving others. Sin encourages us to love our own selfish desires. Turning to sin means we turn our backs on what Jesus did on the cross. We try, through human effort, to be “good”. Even on our best day, we cannot please God or be good enough.

“There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God.”

Romans 3:10-11 NIV

Death, heartache, tragedies, pain, and hate may seem to have the upper hand in this world. Everywhere we turn, something bad is happening. Society seems to embrace sin, believers struggle to fight sin, but God’s grace is wonderfully displayed on the cross. We, in and of ourselves, cannot overcome sin. In our sin we are dead, but through the blood of Christ we are alive. The remedy to our sin problem is Jesus. Sin is no longer our master because of grace! How beautiful is that hope in such a hopeless world?

So how should believers respond when tragedy strikes?? We respond the same way Christ does. We respond in love. We listen to others when they’re crying out for justice and offer them the good news of Jesus. We respond through prayer. We respond by going out and serving. We respond by reminding our children and ourselves that we can trust God’s authority over all our brokenness. Remember, “our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Ephesians 6:12).