The biggest thing we can learn from this is to not take life for granted. Love your family, love your friends, and never forget that at any moment your life or their life can be ripped away from you. Anything can happen. Maybe you can die in your sleep. You can die crossing the street. You can die in a car. There are a multitude of ways you can pass unexpectedly. Moments like these should remind us that we must our lives to fullest. We must praise God, or if you don't believe in a higher being, then just recognize how amazing it is to be alive. Moreover, we must remember to not sweat the small stuff. I constantly find myself sweating petty things, such as an incident at work or a grade on a test, but I've come to learn that life is much more than that. I was once an extreme worry wart, but with time and prayer I've trusted my life to Jesus Christ and I've accepted that there are some things that I have no control over.
Don't worry about anything; instead pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. If you do this, you will experience God's peace which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus ~ Philipians 4:6-7 (New Living Translation)
Other thoughts I have is how saddened I am by the media coverage. I think they are overplaying it, forcing families to relive what has happened, and sending messages to children of terror who catch glimpses of the television screen. Of course, they have the option to watch, but it has been kind of hard to ignore. I think the biggest thing we must for these families is to just respect them and their peace and privacy. Everyone has the right to grieve privately.
Something that most people may overlook is the family of the shooter. They had two losses in their family, both a mother and a son. On top of that, they may hold his guilt on their shoulders. They, too, have the right to grieve privately, and they could use quite some prayers. The questionings, the interviews, and I wouldn't be shocked if death threats went their way. We can't justify his actions, but we must validate that his family deserves respect and dignity, too. It must be hard.
With that being said, what are your thoughts?
