Taking A Knee In Prayer

Kicked back. Relaxed. Stretched out on a blanket under the starry night sky.

Girls looking cute in their cowboy boots, and guys all decked out in their Levis and cowboy hats!

Husbands holding their wives close.

Friends singing at the top of their lungs!

Families enjoying an evening together.

Teen girls swooning over their favorite country singers!

Everyone soaking in and singing along to some of their favorite country songs sung by Jason Aldean.

All is right in their little corner of the world. 

However, in a blink of an eye, in a moment of time, that carefree country concert became a place of horrific sorrow, unspeakable evil, tremendous grief, as a lone gunmen opened fire from an adjacent hotel room.

One minute people were having fun and the next second they were running for their lives.

WHY? 

Because someone

made a choice. 

A very wicked,

self-centered,

hate-filled choice.

NO ONE has the right to take life, except The Giver and The Creator of life, which belongs to God, and God ALONE.

That evening, moms and dads lost their sons and daughters. Brothers and sisters lost their siblings. Sons and daughters lost their parents. Grandparents lost their grandsons and granddaughters. Husbands and wives lost their spouses. And on and on it goes.

There will be people recovering from injuries for days, weeks, months and even years. Emotional scars that will never heal. Family members will be preparing for funerals for those who died way before "their time". 

Lives were

FOREVER

changed that day.

My heart is shattered for the lives that were changed that day for all eternity.

I pray this tragedy will cause you to take YOUR eternity VERY seriously.

God loves you and I and that's EXACTLY why He sent His Only Son to die on the Cross for us. We are all sinners in need of a Saviour. None of us can measure up to God's standard of holiness and that's why Jesus shed his blood on the cross for you and for me. If we could get to Heaven by our own good works or by not doing bad things, than Jesus never would have had to die. It's REALLY that simple.

The ONLY way to be forgiven of your sins and go to Heaven one day is by having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.  

It's ALL

about

a relationship

and

NOTHING

about religion 

"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."
John 14:6

"For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures."
I Corinthians 15:3-4

Trusting Jesus Christ as your personal Saviour is REALLY very simple.

You just talk to God. That's what prayer is all about. You don't need to use words like "thee" and "thou" when praying to God. Just tell the Lord what's in your heart. God loves you!

Tell Him you know you are a sinner in need of a Saviour and you believe Jesus died for YOUR sins, was buried and three days later rose victorious over death. If you had been the only person living, Jesus still would have died just for YOU. Tell Jesus you are asking Him to forgive you of your sins and you desire for Him to be Lord of your life and you are looking forward to spending all eternity with Him in Heaven because of His sacrifice on the cross. It's that simple!

"For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."
Romans 10:13

This tragedy on Sunday evening should remind us all that,

Life is fragile.

Life is precious. 

Life is fleeting. 

Those people at the concert on Sunday had NO clue that evening would be their last day here on Earth. And we have no idea either. None of us knows when our time on this Earth will end. 

Please take

seriously

the question,

"Where will 

YOU 

spend eternity?" 

You may ask,

"What can we do for those in Las Vegas?"

We can pray

Not just now, when it's all still fresh on our minds, but in the days and weeks to follow.

Let's pray together for the families of the victims whose lives have been changed forever.

Let's pray together for those recovering in multiple hospitals around the Las Vegas area. Not only physical healing, but also emotional healing.

Let's pray together for those working the crime scene.

Let's pray together for all the surgeons, doctors and nurses tending to the wounded.

Let's pray together for the first responders who did a fabulous job of taking down the suspect in a short amount of time before any more lives were taken. However, they still deal with the emotional side of their profession.

Let's pray together for the state and local leaders of Las Vegas.

Let's pray together for the churches in the Las Vegas area as they reach out and share the love of Christ with so many who are broken, shattered and feeling completely hopeless.

Let's pray together that what one man meant for evil, God will use for great good and many will turn to Him and come to know Jesus as their personal Saviour. Let's not let evil triumph!

Amidst the evil of one man, there is emerging story after story of heroism.

Americans doing what they do best, which is helping others, no questions asked.

So many stopping to help strangers.

People whom they never met, but dragging them to safety any way they could.

Some making it over the wall to the safe zone, just to head back into the chaos to bring more to safety. 

A husband taking a bullet for his wife.

Friends refusing to leave injured friends behind until the all clear was given.

Getting the injured to hospitals stacked on top of each other in the back of pickup trucks, in wheelbarrows, in dump trucks.

Carrying the wounded to safety on pieces of boards, metal racks, backboards, by hand with the help of a buddy or a stranger. With whatever or with whomever they could find. 

Using belts, shirts, and bandannas as tourniquets to keep people from bleeding out and dying.

Staying with the injured for hours on end, speaking words of encouragement, keeping them focused, helping to keep them conscious.   

“There’s a lot of unsung heroes that day that stood up and helped people.” 

One of the most inspiring statements I heard was made from a gunshot victim who is recovering in one of the Las Vegas hospitals,

"It didn't matter if you were white, black or what race you were. We were all the same color that night. We were just helping one another no matter what!"

This is

the America 

we once knew.

Oh, God,

forgive us.

Oh, Lord,

help us 

to become

this America

once again.

"He healeth

the broken

in heart,

and bindeth up

their wounds."

Psalm 147:3

 

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May God Bless You,

Barb