Shooting in Minneapolis

Two young schoolchildren are dead and more than 20 people are injured after a shooter fired through the windows of a Catholic church in Minneapolis on August 31. The shooter, who died from self-inflicted wounds, has been identified by law enforcement as a 23-year-old former student at the school who began identifying as a female in 2020. Law enforcement says the shooter’s mother is a former employee of the church, and they believe the shooter acted alone.

Analysis and eternal perspective: There is no “making sense” of evil events. This type of horrific event has become something of a regular occurrence, but that does nothing to reduce the horror for the families of the victims and the survivors. We as The Equipped community will be in fervent prayer for these families as they navigate loss and walk through recovery.

There is very likely always several complex factors—both known and unknown—that lead to an evil action like this one. The callousness required to take innocent lives is born out of a seared conscious and deeply misaligned identity. Isaiah 43:1 is a crystal-clear reminder that each of us is not only intentionally designed by a loving God but also called by name and claimed by God.

There are many variations of losing touch with this clarion call on our lives, but your mission and mine includes reminding those around us they are fearfully and wonderfully made (Ps. 139:14), and intentionally designed for a specific purpose (Eph. 2:10).

“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well” (Ps. 139:14).

“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Eph. 2:10).

The following article originally appeared in Thann’s “The Equipped” Weekly Newsletter. For more information on Thann’s weekly email, click here.