Random Thoughts on Virginia Tech Shootings

I've been reading and listening today to the horrific events that happened yesterday at Virginia Tech. It gives us a feeling for what life is like in Iraq everyday. Here are a few random thoughts bouncing around my brain.

One of the professors killed apparently was quite a hero as he blocked the door against the gunman, saving many of his students before he himself was killed. That kind of bravery needs to be recognized, I think. Yesterday was also the Holocaust Memorial Day in Israel, where a siren wails and everyone stops for a minute of remembering. The professor was a  Holocaust survivor. You can read more of the story here. 

I also found the various responses interesting. As Americans, we like to feel like we are in control of our situations, and so after almost every accident or tragedy like this, people's first reaction is to try and assign blame or figure out what went wrong. There are many who are upset with the school for not notifying students earlier or not shutting down campus. But would this have done any good? I don't know. Now don't get me wrong: I do think that we should learn from things like this, and there are cultures that are weak in this area. But there comes a point when we have to realize that no matter what we do things will go wrong. Accidents will happen. Malicious people will do evil things. And all we can do is trust God. We need to remember that no matter how hard we try, we are not in control. God is. We should do what we can to be safe or to plan, but there are no certainties. I am not advocating fatalism, but a healthy trust in a sovereign God, not the sovereign ability of Americans to plan everything or prevent anything bad from happening. 

But overall, my heart goes out to the family and friends of those who were killed. This is not the way things are supposed to be.  I can remember very clearly to this day the first time a good friend of mine was killed. She was killed by a drunk driver while we were in college. One Friday night she was at our house hanging out, and Sunday evening she was dead. I had never really known grief before that time. Why would a fervent believer in Jesus with a great future serving him die at such a young age? This is simply not the way things are supposed to be. 

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