Articles
Why a Quick Fix for Mass Shootings Won’t Work
Public mass shootings incite waves of grief, fear, and outrage that lead to a strong desire to do something. Inevitably, this leads to a national debate regarding gun control. Z. Byron Wolf reports, “The details don’t really matter when it comes to mass shootings in the current political climate. The script now is set —…
Read MoreAre Mass Shootings Becoming Deadlier?
Columbine—a 1999 tragedy so traumatic and severe that that the very word has become permanently synonymous with mass shootings—no longer ranks among America’s 10 deadliest public shootings.[1] Three of the deadliest mass shootings in modern history have occurred within the last year and a half, beginning with the Pulse Nightclub shooting in Orlando, Florida. In…
Read MoreWhy Does God Allow Mass Shootings?
There is no easy resolution to the problem of public mass shootings because, at its core, it is a moral issue. As such, mass shootings are not something that can be legislated away. President Donald Trump rightly called the Las Vegas shooting an “act of pure evil.”[1] Likewise, Carl Chinn, who runs an extensive database on…
Read MoreAre Mass Shootings on the Rise?
In the wake of the church shooting in Sutherland Texas, the Huffington Post ran the headline, “Mass Shootings in America are Becoming More Common – and More Deadly.” This seems to be the national sentiment, but are public mass shootings truly on the rise? There is no consistent standard for defining mass shootings. This is why Gun…
Read MoreShould We Blame God for Natural Disasters?
Within weeks, nine western states have battled forest fires while two record-breaking hurricanes have inundated our southern and eastern coastlines with water. On August 25, Hurricane Harvey struck Houston, Texas in what the Washington Post called an unprecedented “1,000-year flood event”, dropping more than 50 inches of rain within a few days.[1][2] One week later, the…
Read MoreAre Natural Disasters God’s Megaphone?
On August 25, 2017, Hurricane Harvey struck Houston, Texas in what the Washington Post called an unprecedented “1,000-year flood event”, dropping more than 50 inches of rain within a few days.[1][2] Only two weeks later, Hurricane Irma delivered “significant devastation” to the U.S. Virgin Islands and pummeled the entire state of Florida.[3] Boasting wind speeds of…
Read MoreHow Can a Loving God Allow Natural Disasters?
God’s love compels Him to alert people to the peril of their sinful behavior. God readily protects us from much of what may otherwise naturally occur, but we should not expect God to continually withhold such disaster when we are in rebellion to Him. At some point, He may choose to lift His hand of…
Read MoreDoes God Send Natural Disasters?
As the Creator God, it should not surprise us to discover that God uses His creation to accomplish His will. Within the context of warning of pending judgment, Amos 4:13 reminds us that God is sovereign over creation, “For behold, he who forms the mountains and creates the wind, and declares to man what is…
Read MoreAre Natural Disasters a Judgment upon the Most Wicked?
God can, and has, used natural disasters to punish wickedness. Sometimes natural disasters are God’s means of reminding the world of His righteousness, justice, and sovereignty. Other times, God’s will is that people seek refuge from calamity by returning to Him in repentance and righteousness. But lest we be tempted to believe that God allows…
Read MoreWhy Is North Korea so Aggressive?
For decades, North Korea has projected hostility toward the United States, but their aggression has escalated to a new level in 2017. Highlights include: June 13 – Otto Warmier, an America college student who was tortured and detained in North Korea for 17 months, was returned to the U.S. severely brain damaged and in a…
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