Aide Mendez, 23, is one person whose life was destroyed. Her
one year old daughter and her three year old son were cut off from any chance
at life, and her boyfriend’s cousin also
passed away. Her boyfriend survived,
broken and scarred for life. The four family members involved in an apparent murder-suicide all died from a single gunshot wound to the
head.
The woman who shot her two children, their father and a cousin before
committing suicide took video of herself on her iPad as she smoked
methamphetamine prior to the killings. The world
is crying out; desperate for answers.
They seek anything and everything to numb the pain, the fear and the
rejection they feel from just being alive. There are millions of lives at stake. But, for those of us who are alive in Christ, we have hope.
It is imperative that now, more than any other time in
history, all who claim to be Christians begin to stand up for what we say we
believe. Certainly many of us have been
taught that our “religion” is a private matter between us and God. But the Word of God, the Holy Bible, says
otherwise. “Therefore, we may boldly
say: The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?” ~Hebrews
13:6
God does not want us to shrink back or be wimpy about what
we believe. On the other hand, God also
does not want us to beat people over the head, He says, "in your hearts
set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who
asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with
gentleness and respect"~1 Peter 3
So what is the right balance? First, we must let our lives be our
testimony. Stop living a compromised
life. A couple of “white lies” here and
there, a little flirting with someone who is not your spouse, having an
attitude with someone just because they don’t look like you. “Do not be conformed to this world (this
age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but
be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new
ideals and its new attitude], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what is
the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good
and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you].” ~Romans 12:2
Whether you choose to do these things or not, life will go
on. But, if you make the choice to
follow the example that Jesus set for us, you will set yourself on a path so
amazing, so wonderful, so joy filled, it will leave you breathless!