Our hearts and prayers go out to the families in Newtown and the surrounding area who suffered a great tragedy and loss of their loved ones on Dec. 14.
We can only ask for God to comfort them and pull them through this terrible crisis.
For 18 years my wife and I lived just a few miles away from Newtown and still have many friends in that area.
At first I was shell-shocked when I heard the news, then I became angry. But the more I thought about it, I became more angry with myself, with the people and the leadership of this country.
We have put ourselves, our own wants and desires, before God. We've lost the relationship that God wants from us and for us, and that is to love one another more than we love ourselves. Love and the age-old knowledge of following his commandments need to be relearned.
Throughout history, this strife has been happening, but are we learning from it? I don't think so. Read your Bible, regardless of what your religious beliefs are.
I don't believe there is a Bible in any religion that says we are to put ourselves ahead of God. I'm willing to bet that all versions give us information on how to live, loving God and each other.
But you know what each of us does? We take from those words what suits us and our lifestyle. We twist those words to mean what we want them to. Me! Me! Me! It is all about me.
We have allowed this country and the people in it to put God on the back burner. We've taken God out of our families, out of our schools, out of our work places, out of just about everything.
And then we sit back in shock when something like this tragedy occurs and say: How can this happen?
I think we have to start with ourselves and turn back to God. Then work with our families to do the same, then our communities, then our state and then our nation.
Yes, tragedies like this are going to happen. They have been happening since sin came into this world. That's what sin causes and is.
But remember what this season is all about. Christians celebrate the birth of Christ, our savior, and look forward to the second coming of Jesus.
Jews celebrate and look forward to the coming of the Messiah. I'm reasonably sure other religions have their own traditions and celebrations.
There's a lot that we need to pray about and even more that we must do. Think about it. Is Christ the center of your heart or are you?
Peace and love be with you all and especially right now with those families and friends in Newtown.
David Thompson
Altoona
