How Will We Respond?

Another shooting took place in America yesterday that grabbed national headlines. Multiple people were killed. Lives were forever changed. We are told life will never be the same.

It is a message we have heard time and time again just in 2015. According to the New York Times, there have been 209 days this where more than four people were killed or injured in a shooting. More often than not, this year, we have read the reports, seen the images, and questioned how to respond.

We have argued that violence can no longer happen in America. We say that we never want to see another family destroyed by violence. We say we want peace in our streets. We say we want action. We say we want something to change.

But nothing ever changes.

Instead, we move on quickly to the next story. We move on to the latest celebrity gossip. We move on to wondering if the Golden State Warriors will ever lose a game. We move on to our shopping lists.

We hear about the shootings. We say things will be different, but nothing ever changes.

We say someone should do something. We demand action from those in power. We demand a response from those who have the ability to influence change.

But nothing ever changes.

The reason nothing ever changes is because change doesn’t begin with someone else. Change only begins when we take the initiative to make change a reality.

If we want to see an end to violence, then let us be makers of peace by teaching what it means to love one another.

If we want to see an end to violence, then let us be advocates for the voiceless and for measures that will lead to change.

If we want to see an end to violence, then let us take time to volunteer with groups who are seeking to be the presence of Christ in places of violence and despair in our communities.

Change can happen, but it will only happen when we make the effort to seek a different way for our communities. The question is … will anything ever change?