The Face of Destruction

Are we sure we really want to begin dissecting the possible "signs" along the way that this 20 year old would go and exterminate 26 lives in Newtown, CT!?!  I say, "Not!" We really need to be careful with our quick responses to crisis situations. We must guard against manufacturing false assumptions about the deceased, because too often, those skewed conclusions can indict many who are living.

HEART (think) ABOUT IT for a moment. I've heard anything from "He looked different," to "He was standoffish," to "He liked to go shooting at the gun range." So, consequently, the above three statements suggest:

1.) A perceived wrong, weird, or "different" LOOK (external characteristic) qualifies a person to be a killer.
2.) A perceived difference of one being less socially engaging, or not desiring to be in large crowds at times, qualifies a person to be a killer. 
3.) A personal conflict with another person's choice of hobby and favored past time, qualifies a person to be a killer.

Wow,...really!?! Well, I have even been perceived and at times, personally, to have had at least 3 of the 3 above stated qualifications myself. So, what is the news media really saying? What do you think? There is too often, too much time and attention given to "Looks, Personality 'Criminal Profiling,' and Conflicts of Interest," while the inward man, a prisoner of his/her own choices, escapes the prison cell only for a fleeting moment to become the perpetrator to the innocent,...a leach that sucks out the life of those who are so deeply loved. For those who may have similar physical characteristics as that of the 20 year old killer, or he/she who tends to be aligned the same way socially, rather than being loud or bent toward being more outspoken, and/or for the person who is as fulfilled pulling the trigger and punching paper at the gun-range as one is on the dance floor at the nightclub,.....it can be hazardous to put the emphasis on the looks, social comforts or inclinations, or conflicts of hobby interest.

The Depravity of Man (Sinful Nature) is the mastermind behind the so called "sudden - where did this come from" madness and massive sea of human wreckage left behind. You see, too many, too often, CHOOSE to ignore, the extenuating possibilities and real probabilities when flirting with reckless appetites in the name of "Fun, Freedom, and 'Mature Adult' Independence."

SUMMING IT UP:
My constant prayer is that God would so shake each and every one of us with a renewed awareness of the subtle seductions of sin, that not only has the ability to distract us, derail us, deflate us, disable us, and defeat us, but even destroy us. We can enjoy education, success, money, and have attractive marriages, families and relationships, yet on the heels of comforting words delivered to many by Jesus and many miracles performed by Him, He summed it all up with these words:

"What do you benefit, if you gain the whole world and forfeit/lose your own soul?" (Mark 8:36)

This not only puts a whole new "Face" on the recent happenings in a small, quaint place on the map called "NEWTOWN, CT," but it is certainly cause for pause for you and I.