A sad day.

If you happen to read the news at all, you probably heard about the Navy Pilot shooting in Coronado (San Diego) on New Year's Day.

You may also know that the pilot community is very small.  I received a phone call early this week from a dear friend, telling me to check the news. There were two pilots and two civilians shot in a condo. There were no names released at that time, but as I said, the community is very small.

One of the pilot's was Bob Reeves, he was in Mr. Pilot's class back in Mississippi.  The class there was small, only 4 guys, so my entire family knew him fairly well.  He was Mr. Pilot's partner for the dog fighting and carrier qualifying.

There followed a whirlwind of phone calls and information being passed among pilots from that class and their wives.  A combination of shock, grief, and sadness overwhelmed us all.  No one wanted to say it, but we all expected Bob to be named as the shooter when the ballistic information was released. That sounds incredibly awful, but after spending much time with him for that 18 months in Meridian, that was the conclusion we all had. No one was shocked when the facts were released.  That added to the grief, I think.

As we sat down to dinner to share what we felt appropriate for the children to know, Boy recalled having dinner at Mom's Diner with Mr. Reeves and Dad.  There were lots of questions about why- why would he do that to them, and why would he do that to himself?  We took the opportunity to remind ourselves that we are all wicked in heart. (The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?  I the LORD search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds." ~Jeremiah 17:9&10) That the bible says that if we are even angry at someone, we have committed murder in our hearts ("You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment,' But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, 'You fool!' will be liable to the hell of fire. ~Matthew 5:21&22) That the only thing keeping anyone from behaving in that same way is God's hand of Mercy. (Romans 1:24, below)  That once he realized what he had done, he wanted to hide in the only place he could. (Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him? declares the LORD. Do I not fill heaven and earth? declares the LORD ~Jeremiah 23:24, And nothing is hidden from His sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account. ~Hebrews 4:13)

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen. For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error. And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God’s decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.  ~Romans 1:18-32

I thank the Lord for His hand of Mercy.  For His steadfast love and faithfulness.  I praise God that he protected my husband, my family, and my friends from this horrible tragedy.  It could have been any one of the guys in his class, any one of us, really.  But I grieve for the lost. I pray for the families of those involved, my heart especially goes out to the parents of the other pilot.  They lost two children in a moment of rage. Also, for Bob's parents and the men that knew him and worked with him.  Let their hearts not be troubled with "what if's."

For each and every one of us, the wages of our wicked hearts- the payment we must make, is death, and then eternity in hell.  But, with a saving faith in Jesus Christ, we can instead have eternal life in heaven.

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. ~Romans 6:23

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus! ~Romans 3:23&24