Bill taught me how to handle guns, but he tempered that knowledge with these words, "Don't ever use a gun, Kay, unless you are willing to kill without hesitation."
I've never forgotten that.
After Bill passed, I transferred ownership of all our guns to others. This was for two reasons. I had teenagers and children in the home who were struggling with grief, and I intentionally chose to place myself in a position where I would have to trust more deeply in the LORD for my protection and defense.
Why would I do such a thing? I no longer fear the future. I believe that my eternal place is secure through His grace and my faith. In addition to this, if it's not my time to go, nothing is going to take me. If it is my time to go, nothing will be able to preserve me. Those who would harm me, however, are in desperate need of my prayers and God's merciful patience until they are transformed.
Childlike faith? Perhaps, but my faith that God is in control is also an individual choice that cannot be legislated by any government or removed by any individual. Ever.
You may wield a gun. Or not. I feel no sense of judgment either way regarding your personal choice. For myself, however, I remain enthralled by the stories of faith in the Bible where the LORD defended others with miracles: walls of water, flaming torches and smashing pots, and the Angel of Death. I wait expectantly for Him to confound or transform my enemies and show His might. Contemporary inspirational stories like "End of the Spear" would not exist had the missionaries chosen to defend their right to live. They trusted the will of the LORD and intentionally gave up their lives, by faith. The positive impact of their decision continues to this day.
Kay O'Hara
April 11, 2013
"The LORD protects those of childlike faith; I was facing death, and He saved me." Psalm 116:6 NLT
