We all know too well by now what occurred on February 14, 2018. In a span of mere hours, a day of giving love turned into a day of shedding blood. Too wrapped up in the business of another week, I never fully processed the magnitude of the tragedy. I wasn't a graduate of Marjory Stoneman Douglas. I grew up hours away from that entire area. On the surface, I was disconnected from it all. It had no direct impacts on my life, so why should I care?
Days later, I got up bright and early as usual to attend church. Dressed in a worn KidLife t-shirt and armed with a piping cup of coffee in my hand, I felt ready for the message ahead. As the worship team's sound began to rumble through the walls of Live Oak Room, I entered and sat in my usual seat with my usual friends.
Normal. Routine.
But the minute our pastor spoke, I knew this would be no normal Sunday. His message focused on the next part of our church's series, ROOTED: "Where is God in the midst of our suffering?" It was an uncanny coincidence that the question for that weekend revolved around tragedy, since our community itself was recovering from likely the worst one since Pulse. As our pastor spoke, using the story of Lazarus being raised from the dead, my hand kept on touching the large "K" on my shirt. And that's what I thought of the entire day.
Kids. Teenagers. Young Adults. What are they missing from us as leaders?
I can't help but wonder who Nikolas had to look up to in his life. Maybe he never had someone to show him love and compassion, or maybe those persons who did were overpowered by the countless others who showed him hate and cruelty.
I think of this, and it wrenches my heart to think that I also fail at showing love to others. That I could one day be the reason someones harms others or themselves. As tears fall down my face writing these words, I hope to leave you all with the realization that we each have one responsibility in this life:
To love.
Before a tragedy, love without fear of rebuke. Love the unseen and unknown. Love your family, friends, enemies. Love because you know it is the right thing to do.
During a tragedy, love those who are hurting. Act as their roots in an unstable climate. Be there to comfort, to support, to persevere. Love because you know it has the power to heal.
After a tragedy, love as you were before, but with a newfound tenacity. Step back, see what went wrong, and love harder to live past it. Love because you know it can prevent an unloving cycle.
This responsibility is just two words, but it is more important than ever in a world that seems to become more broken and dark every day.
Because just maybe, your small act of love will be the reason a gun is never purchased, or a suicide is never planned. So choose love, always.