Still Processing the Violence

So, here's a thought...
I think part of why recent tragedies have affected me more than usual (Other than being an emotional and compassionate person) is because of how transparent it has all been.

In the past week we have seen two gruesome murders played out in front of the country. and when I say seen, I mean literally. There are videos of two murders (Charlie Kirk & Iryna Zarutska) making constant rounds on social media. I know there is so much more violence and hurt happening, and the question has been asked by many: What about (fill in the blank). I agree. No one act of violence deserves more compassion than the others. I ache for all of it, but - these are so real to the world because we’ve watched them happen.

I am a self-admitted true crime junkie and have been for a long time. But it's one thing to hear and read and even see the aftereffects, but to actually see these murders just stirred up a different kind of grief entirely.

Not only that, but I was shown one of the videos by my teenager!
She should never see stuff like this. None of us should.

What world is this?

When did our world become so desensitized to this type of evil that we are ok sharing these videos? When did it even become ok to share this type of content. I feel like not that long ago, sharing something like this could have been illegal somehow (and maybe that's my naivety).

And I keep thinking… how are we as Christians okay with this?
How do we reconcile our faith, our mission to bring hope and love, with the reality of a world that feeds off violence and hate? Maybe that’s what’s troubling me the most. It isn’t just the murders themselves. It’s the normalcy of it. Hate is just part of our feed, our content, our lives.

What about Romans 12:18? And yes, I feel like there’s a whole other blog brewing about how the hate within the church must be eradicated before we’ll ever see the world change, but I’m not ready to go there yet.

Right now I’m just left with grief. Grief for humanity. Grief that my daughter’s eyes have seen things they never should have. Grief that the church too often mirrors the world’s hate instead of Christ’s love.

Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” And I believe that. I believe His peace is still available even in this mess. But I also know we can’t just shrug at evil and keep scrolling. We can’t be numb and call it faith.

So I’m left with questions. I’m left with grief. And I’m left with Jesus, because He’s the only answer I’ve got in a world this broken.

*Romans 12:18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.