Tragedy always hurts more when it happens to our children. Hundreds of kids went to school today with their innocence in tact. They are leaving school today with a wound they will carry the rest of their lives.

The question everyone is asking is “Why?” What causes someone to do something so evil, so horrific, so cowardice? The easy answer: We live in a broken world.

The hard answer: Our world is broken because we are broken.

All of us experience wounds in this life. Those wounds affect us in deep and profound ways. Some are small wounds; the ones that weren’t that big of a deal at the time, but we just can’t seem to shake them. The words keep running through our heads and we say to ourselves, “Just get over it,” but we can’t. Others are big wounds. The ones that immediately change the direction of our lives. Like losing a loved one in a shooting. Or surviving a shooting. Or spending years on the battle field of war. Or watching your parents get divorced. Or your own divorce. The list could go on and on.

Each of those wounds carry a message. And the Enemy of your life would love nothing more than for you to believe the lie attached to your wound. For example, if you were hurt as a child in some deep way and didn’t know how to deal with the pain, you may be led to believe that the only way to take away your own pain is to cause pain in others. So you open fire in a school or a mall or a theatre. That is revenge. Revenge belongs to the Enemy.

Our world is filled with people acting out according to a lie they have believed because of a wound. Some of those acts happen in a moment and lead to unspeakable pain for an entire country. Other acts are damaging over time. They chip away at your confidence, faith, joy, or innocence. Either way, believing the Enemy’s lies is always tragic.

The only thing that can combat a lie is the truth. So what can we do in light of such a tragedy? Lean on the truth of God, and pray.

-We can pray the prayer Jesus taught us to pray, “Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” God, your kingdom is perfect. May your kingdom come in all its fullness!

-We can be people of healing. Being a person of healing begins by praying for healing. “Lord, heal our land!” But we can’t stop there. We have to “push while we pray” (a phrase I stole from Steven Furtick’s book, Sun Stand Still), and become people of healing. There are hurting people all around you. Let’s commit to being extra sensitive to the hurts of people around us and show them love and give them hope through the truth of God. For it is a lack of love and hope that gives birth to evil.

-Reach our hearts and eyes to the One who makes all things all new and say, “Lord, come quickly.”

“God, in your mercy, would you comfort the parents of the children who were killed today. Comfort seems like an impossible request in the face of these events, but nothing is impossible with You. Be with the children who witnessed such evil and lost their innocence. They will carry wounds because of this. As they witnessed violence may they not become violent. As they experienced evil, may they continue to believe in good. Despite losing their friends and classmates, may they come to know there is rich gain in knowing You. Heal our land! May your kingdom come and your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Lord, come quickly. Amen.”