where is the victory

This morning I am a little bit sad and disgusted. There is a feeling in my stomach that just won't go away...and no, I am not sick again.

I heard the news last night that one of America's enemies was killed. I didn't want to think too much about it because not only was 9/11 a traumatic day for many people but I too had family that was in that city that day. I remember sitting in our living room in our tiny house watching the news as the towers fell down. I called my family to make sure that our relatives that worked in the city were not in this area. Thankfully they weren't. I was pregnant with Sid at the time and the thought that was running through my mind was, "how can I bring a child into this world that is so mean?"

Now we have 3 kids and I have to say that the question I asked myself back on 9/11 is in my head again today. It may not be for the reason though that you may think and this may get a little controversial, which is why I hesitate on even posting this. I don't like to write about political issues or ones that may bring members of our family to opposite ends. To clear the air first, this post isn't about any of you. I haven't seen or heard any of our family make a comment about the issue that I am talking about today.

Other questions are making me doubt my patriotism as well because I am having a very hard time rejoicing in the death of another person. I don't agree with the war and although I try to keep my mouth shut as much as possible as people talk about the war, I also know many people that are serving in this war. I know moms that are home with their kids as the dad is off in another country. I know women that want to be moms but they are anxiously waiting for their husbands tour to be done before they start their family. I know sons that want to serve this country and jumped at the opportunity to give their life and time for this purpose. I respect all of these people and their families and don't understand the true sacrifice that they are making for the United States.

I also know that the person who was killed was not very nice. I've seen the videos that were made of him expressing his anger towards America. I've seen the groups of men that have been portrayed on the screen that this man has ultimately been in charge of and training them to carry out the wishes that he has.

But, seriously, do we have to kill people? The fact that Osama is now dead doesn't give me joy in any way. It makes me sad. I don't know the details on how he died or what our troops had to do in order to carry out their orders but I do know that we aren't supposed to kill people. Never once in the Bible did God say that we should kill our enemies. Never once in the Bible did God tell us to rejoice in the death of someone. I believe God also wanted us to love one another and not talk bad about others. Now, I'm not saying that we should be giving Osama's family hugs and treasures galore or that we should have just let him be and continue with his destructive behavior towards us. I know that something needed to be done. I'm just not sure that killing him was the right answer.

The reason why I have this horrible feeling in my stomach is partly because this man was killed but also because of what I am seeing all over the news, the expressions on peoples faces as they are watching the news and the posts on Facebook that I am seeing from people that claim that they are Christians.

Here are just a few posts that I read this morning which made my stomach turn as I read each word...
"Now I lay me down to sleep, one less terrorist this world does keep. With all my heart I give my thanks, to those in uniform regardless of ranks. You serve our country and serve it well, with humble hearts your stories tell. So as I rest my weary eyes, while freedom rings our flag still flies. You… give your all, do what you must...with God we live and God we trust!!!"
"It's the end of the world as we know it! So long, Bin Laden!"
"Next on the list: Gaddafi. Then we need to back off a little on all the spending I think. How many trillions do we have to knock off all the world's bad guys?"

As I went looking for these posts this morning I have noticed that a few I wanted to post are no longer on some profile pages. There really were some horrible and mean things being said on this social media site and I am glad that some people had a change of heart and realized that what they wrote was way too harsh. The comments above are nothing compared to the other comments that I saw this morning. But, these are from Christians...you know, those people that know the 10 Commandments and try to follow them every day. Statistically, the majority of Christians vote a certain way in the elections and that vote is determined a lot by what person supports or doesn't support abortion. How is killing this one man any different than killing an unborn child? If Christians claim that they don't want unborn babies killed then they should follow through and also set this standard for people that are already living. How many people have been killed in the wars since 9/11? Don't just think of the Americans that were killed in the towers and the planes or the troops that have been on foreign soil defending our country. Think of everyone that has been killed...the other soldiers, the kids, the women and the men that live in these countries that we have invaded.

I saw another comment on Facebook from someone that I truly admire and respect and who is also a Christian. Her comment summed up the thoughts that Christians should be having rather than proclaiming enthusiastic expressions of joy in the death of an enemy...
"An earthly enemy meets his fate. Someday these earthly exploits will take place in heavenly realms. Victory in Jesus!"