I have been pondering the events that have unfolded since last Friday’s shootings in Connecticut and can only come too one conclusion. We need to turn back to God. The answer is not gun control or mental health modifications, although it wouldn’t hurt but a crying out to God as a nation for another Great Awakening. Scripture makes it very clear that we open ourselves up to evil when we turn away from God. This is hard as good people are often affected by wickedness and there is no easy answer to explain why certain people and areas are affected by evil. We do not know where and when evil will strike so we must be prepared to serve our King at all times. The Democrat Governor of Connecticut said "Evil visited this town today". The Old Testament shows us what happens to a country when God turns his face away. The priestly blessing was to ask God to turn his face upon us. This is not often thought about in an affluent society as we think we are in control. This shooting shows us evil can happen anywhere at anytime. People are often so ignorant they even sing about evil and hell in a positive manner such as ACDC’s Highway to hell. They said Hey Momma, look at me I'm on my way to the Promised Land I'm on the highway to hell (Don't stop me). Hell is a place void of God. There is no light whatsoever. These people with this mentality have no concept of hell as they write as if their experience here will be the same there. You take God out of the picture and you have hell. No God= no light. Some countries have more evil prevalent than others; the whole is entrenched in evil. The same goes with people. We on the other hand get glimpses of evil. But what will we do with that glimpse. Will we turn from our wicked ways or will we continue to live for ourselves? If God allows the evil to come upon us as he did with the Israelites when Babylon attacked we are in trouble. They were warned and they still did not listen. Deuteronomy 6:13-19 “Fear the Lord your God, serve him only and take your oaths in his name. 14 Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around you; 15 for the Lord your God, who is among you, is a jealous God and his anger will burn against you, and he will destroy you from the face of the land. 16 Do not test the Lord your God as you did at Massah. 17 Be sure to keep the commands of the Lord your God and the stipulations and decrees he has given you. 18 Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight, so that it may go well with you and you may go in and take over the good land that the Lord promised on oath to your forefathers, 19 thrusting out all your enemies before you, as the Lord said.” Do we really serve God this way? Do we really serve Him only? People seem to think that God will be their God even if they do not serve him.
As you have seen the question is always asked why would a loving God allow this to happen. One of the best answers I have heard in awhile is from Mike Huckabee. I am not a follower of his but found this response very clear about the situation. He said, "It's far more than just taking prayer or Bible reading out of the schools. It's the fact that people sue a city so we're not confronted with a manger scene or a Christmas carol, and lawsuits are filed to remove a cross that's a memorial to fallen soldiers. Churches and Christian-owned businesses are told to surrender their values. We carefully and intentionally stop saying things are 'sinful' and we call them 'disorders.' Sometimes we even say they are normal. And, to get to where we have to abandon bedrock moral truths, then we are asked, well 'where was God?' And I respond that, as I see it, we've escorted Him right out of our culture and we've marched Him off the public square and then we express our surprise that a culture without Him actually reflects what it has become," Huckabee said. In the near future, after talk about the tragedy has subsided, Huckabee added, "we'll probably ask God to excuse Himself from view and we'll announce in our arrogant pride that we're now enlightened and educated, and we've evolved beyond needing Him." I would like to add to this statement the name Jesus. Many people believe in God but sadly belief in Jesus as the Messiah our Saviour is the problem. Many will say how dare you say that Jesus is the only way, the only truth, and the only life.
The responses to this were quite interesting. Of course there was an outcry against this from people who do not realize the magnitude of God turning his face from us. He sent Jesus to be the light. Matthew 4:16 states, “the people living in darkness have seen a great light but John says the world did not recognize him nor received him.” Nothing has changed. As a nation both the United States and Canada must turn back to God.
We do not want God to turn his face from us and let the darkness cover the land. My prayer is that we will turn back to God and so as 2 Chronicles 7:14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. 15 Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place. 16 I have chosen and consecrated this temple so that my Name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.
