Too Busy To…
By Susan Klein
“…and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”
Luke 10:27b (NIV)
Recently, a mass
shooting at a Florida school rocked the nation. Statistics from the Gun
Violence Archive show that in the past four years, there have been 239 school
shootings, 16 of them considered mass shootings. [1] I was shocked to hear how high the numbers were.
Like many people, I
fear I am becoming numbed, to a certain degree, to the violence around me. I
tend to not watch the news, fearing reports of more stories about lives taken
unnecessarily. I want to hide from the evil realities that exist. But that
isn’t always possible, nor is it helpful.
In this last
shooting, the teenage gunman had a troubled past. He lost his father when he
was young, and his mother last year. According to CNN reports, neighbors
revealed there was “something not right about him,” and that he had been “weird”
and “crazy” most of his life. Police were often seen in his driveway and
troubles at school resulted in expulsion. In jail, he was placed on suicide
watch. This young man obviously had some deep-rooted problems.
While not condoning violence,
in these situations, I often wonder what triggered the actions? If people
(reportedly) witnessed odd behavior, did they ever try to reach out? Did anyone
make an effort to get the young man help? (I know that in this situation, a
number of educators and his mom tried.) In many crimes, the perpetrator is reported
to be seemingly “normal” by those who know him/her. Not this time. People who
knew this guy saw that he had problems from early on.
Have we become too
busy in our culture to notice? If we do notice, are we too busy living our own
lives to make any efforts at reaching out? I know I’ve been guilty. Years ago,
a troubled teen lived right next door to me. While I wasn’t too busy to notice
the cars of loud kids pulling up at all hours, I made no attempt to reach out
to him. I even justified my actions by convincing myself that he wouldn’t want
a meddling neighbor butting in. Besides, I had “other things on my plate” to
deal with. One afternoon the Lord convicted me otherwise.
I had just pulled a
batch of cookies from the oven when the loud cars started arriving next door. I
put a couple dozen on a plate and walked over. Not making a big deal out of it,
I just said, “Thought you might like some cookies.”
A door was opened.
More interaction
ensued.
Let’s not be too
busy to…
GOING DEEPER:
1. Might there be someone in your
sphere of influence that is going unnoticed? What simple steps can you take to
reach out?
FURTHER
READING:
John 21:16; Galatians 6:2,10;
Luke 10:30-37
Susan is married to Mark, and co-leads an in-home small group.
She serves as a mentor to young women, and is a member of Oakwood’s Peace Team,
helping people work through conflict.
