I was holding my mother's hand when she died. She shuddered one last breath, then exhaled and was still. The room was eerily silent. The heart monitor stopped chirping. I had waited alone by her hospital bed holding her hand, her fingers now cool and pale. I began to thank the Lord for her life. Tears flowed down my cheeks; sorrow mixed with joy. I knew where Mom was. Death was merciful as her body expired. I would see her again! When the nurse came in, I leaned on her shoulder and sobbed.
My mother had held me as a newborn, had prepared food for me, clothed me, bandaged my injuries, loved me unconditionally, and saw me off to school each morning. This was the follower of Jesus who had taken me to church when dad wouldn't do it. I caught her reading the Bible through for the 11th time. I saw her spend hours praying for our family. This was the mother who kept a single coke in the Frigidaire on weekdays and split it 50-50 with my brother and me after school. When I gathered with family for the funeral, I said, "She was a good mother," and "She taught me about Jesus."
Death is real. It hurts. But death in Jesus has no fear. It's like falling asleep and waking up in heaven only to be reunited soon with fellow believers when Christ returns. The Bible has the best data-base for what happens to us after death. If you have faith in Jesus, death can't separate you from God. No other religion has a Savior who experienced death and said, "Because I live, you shall live also!" Death has no sting for we who are born of the Spirit. We'll have a resurrection. Yet now, the human loss still hurts.
The unimaginable grief and shock felt by hundreds of people who suffered from the shooting in Las Vegas is a pain shared by all Americans. For those wounded, for the family of those who died, we feel the pain. As President Trump said to the nation, "Scripture teaches us the Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. We seek comfort in those words, for we know that God lives in the hearts of those who grieve. To the wounded who are now recovering in hospitals, we are praying for your full and speedy recovery, and pledge to you our support from this day forward."
How can anyone be so insane or so evil as to inflict so much pain and suffering? I don't know how but the killer did. He had malice. He plotted and murdered. The Bible says civil law exists to punish such evildoers. When the moral law of God is ignored, when the grace of God that teaches us to live godly is rejected, all that's left is for the law, the police, the courts, and the prisons to do what they are supposed to do, that is, keep the rest of us safe. What else can we do? We can exercise faith's power, and pray.
There is a mandate from God for the Church to be a force for good, to teach God's standard of righteousness, to uphold the family, and to deal with evil in spiritual realms. That is where prayer comes in. We should be praying every day for our government (2 Timothy 2:1-4). President Trump needs our prayers. For our nation's sake, don't curse him but pray for him! I disagreed with Obama but I still prayed for him. President Trump needs God's grace and wisdom. The praying church needs to do its job.
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Ron Wood is a writer and minister. Contact him at [email protected] or visit www.touchedbygrace.org. The opinions expressed are those of the author.
Editorial on 10/11/2017