Dr. Lawrence Butler

The Bridge Church, Pembroke

A boy and a gun. Hmmm! A lot of questions arise from that situation. 

How old is the boy? What kind of gun is it? Where are the parents and what are they thinking? Over the last twenty-five years or so the use of guns has become a hot topic in our society because of the awful tragedies that have occurred. However, before that, many young boys wanted, and were gifted, guns by their parents or grandparents. They were not the automatic weapons of today but rather hunting weapons such as 22 rifles or shotguns, and the relatively innocuous BB and pellet guns. So it was with me and my siblings. Our father taught us about gun safety and proper hunting techniques. None of us have ever been hurt with our weapons.

Well, almost none of us have been hurt. At the tender age of something too small to put the butt of the BB gun to my shoulder, I walked out on the porch of my grandfather who lived in the country. There was a fence post in front of the house that was very wide, maybe 18 inches. I knew I could hit it with no problem with my new BB gun. However, putting the butt of the gun under my arm into the armpit area didn’t really seem to be a problem. That is, until I shot. I clearly missed and hit the back window of my father’s car which was parked on the other side of the fence. To this day I don’t know how that happened, but I know that it did. I still don’t understand why he had to park his car in that spot, but he made it abundantly clear that I was the one in the wrong.

So many times we aim to do well, but somehow we miss our target. In one sense it’s not just your fault. We have a sin problem. One that was born within us. “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). The Apostle Paul also warned us in another scripture, “Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it” (Hebrews 4:1). There is a rest (or peace) in becoming a servant of Jesus Christ, both in this life and in the world to come. He brings peace, hope, forgiveness and truth. Aiming well is a start, and it means, “Seek ye the Lord while he may be found” (Isaiah 55:6). Please pray and submit your life to the Lord Jesus Christ. Don’t miss the target as I did with the BB gun. There will be consequences that are not pleasant!