AND GOD SAID
Submitted by Mindy Carson

I said, "God, I hurt."
And God said, "I know."

I said, "God, I cry a lot."
And God said, "That is why I gave you tears."

I said, "God, I am so depressed."
And God said, "That is why I gave you Sunshine."

I said, "God, life is so hard."
And God said, "That is why I gave you loved ones."

I said, "God, ! my loved one died."
And God said, "So did mine."

I said, "God, it is such a loss."
And God said, "I saw mine nailed to a cross."

I said, "God, but your loved one lives."
And God said, "So does yours."

I said, "God, where are they now?"
And God said, "Mine is on My right and yours is in the Light."

I said, "God, it hurts."
And God said, "I know."

More Poetry for Columbine

Thumbnails of Columbine High Victims

Cnn has posted pictures and brief bio cameos of the victims at http://cnn.com/us/9904/22/victims.list

Artistic Dedication - Message of the Columbine

The border graphic for this issue of Handmaidens carries a message from the Holy Spirit who inspired it. The columbine is Colorado's state flower and the recent holocaust at its namesake Columbine High School fills the world with grief and horror - children killing children, killing themselves. Not just here, but the world over. Hope, too, and a greater resolve ensues upon deeper reflection...

The two blossoms remind us that there are two sides to this horrific tragedy. One cluster of tender petals bowed in sorrow and despair, the other gazing heavenward with hope and the courage to go on to better things. God will bring good even from such a loss as this. He will thwart the evil designs of Satan. Souls will be won and lives turned around. Families will draw closer. The world will stop to think, will unite against the vile motivations of hate and violence. We shall all be reminded of how precious life really is.

The splendor of the columbine graces the hills and mountains of our lovely Colorado but a short while. It is a high altitude plant and the growing season is brief, reminding us of the lives cut short in Littleton. But the beauty of the columbine is long remembered as will be the glories of those whose lives were so cruelly snuffed out.

The blue and silvery white of this exquisite flower are also the Columbine High School colors. Beyond that, the blue speaks of truth, of heaven and of faithful service. The silvery white bears the message of purity, innocence, forgiveness and commitment.

May our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ grant that we each be filled with a spirit of healing and forgiveness, that we not feed on the darkness or bitterness the evil one tries to serve up before us. May we grow heavenward as the columbine, ever reaching out to our God of Love and Peace and Hope.

Stories of Faith - Columbine Martyrs
By Christine, State Coordinator Colorado Moms in Touch

Dear Praying Sisters,

I thought you would like to hear a story that will probably not make the news. Two different MITI moms have told this to me, as it was told to their kids, by their friends, who were eye witnesses to the event.

When the two 'shooters' had a group of kids in one of the rooms, one of the girls got down on her knees and prayed - they shot and killed her. They asked another girl if she believed in God; when she replied "yes", they shot and killed her. How tragic that those two young men had allowed Satan to deceive them into doing such a terrible thing but we know that all of heaven rejoiced over these two brave girls who stood their ground for their Lord.

When we here in Colorado first heard the news about what was happening at Columbine the call to prayer quickly spread among MITI women. The leader of the Columbine group told me she is convinced that many more would have been hurt or killed if God had not intervened. It was a miracle that the 30 bombs did not explode. The gunmen also had many more weapons that were not used. We are all grieving over the lost and injured but it could have been a lot worse. The son of her group member who was killed was a "dynamite" Christian who was bold in his faith and their group believes that God will use his life and death to reach many of the other kids at Columbine for the Lord.

The number of calls and emails I have received from MITI moms from all over the country has been such a blessing. I am passing these on to the Columbine group leader. Thank you dear saints for your prayers. Please continue to pray for the grieving families.

Your sister in Christ,
Christine

Editor's note: The Denver Post Online quoted eyewitness Crystal Woodman, 16, as saying, "They asked a girl if she believed in God. She said yes, and they shot her. I could hear them talking. They said they waited their whole lives for this. They were saying, "Who's ready to die next?' Then they would whoop and holler when they shot someone.''  More info about the Christian students involved is found at http://www.cybersalt.org/illustrations/illus19990423.htm .

Turn On Your Lights for America
From: Debbie Brandon emmaus@umcswtx.org
Submitted by BNDLight@aol.com

As I was driving to work this morning I passed by an elementary school and noticed that the flag had been lowered to half-mast in memory of the students and their families in Littleton, Colorado. What a wonderful gesture that simple act is. But, I thought to myself, what can I do to show others that I too am deeply affected by this tragedy.
Turn on a light.
Turn on my headlights.
Turn on my porch light.
But how do I get this message to others? Use the Internet.

I'm sending this message to everyone on my email list and am asking that you do the same. I am going to turn on my headlights on Friday morning on my way to work, on Saturday as I run my errands and especially on Sunday as I go to my place of worship. I'm also going to turn on my porch lights n Friday, Saturday and Sunday night.

I'm going to turn on my lights for the families in Littleton to show them that I care about them, that I feel the pain and hurt and heartache. I'm going to turn on my lights for what is right about this country. I'm going to turn on my lights against the darkness, the anger and the prejudice. I hope you will join me. One light is not much but put them together and we can light up the world. Turn on your lights show that you stand for what is right about America.

And as you turn on your headlights and porch lights this weekend; turn on the light in your heart and soul. Show the world that this is not what America is all about. With your light shining bright, along with others, we can come together (if only for a brief moment) and combat the evil that confronts us all.

Please pass this email on to everyone on your address list. Lets see if we can get this message to everyone across this great country before Friday morning and use lets the Internet for what it was intended - good.

Call to Prayer: for Columbine H. S. - Littleton, Colorado
Date: 4/20/99 NHUMCpray@aol.com
Submitted by BNDLight@aol.com

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Prayers for Columbine H. S., Littleton, CO and America. Please lift the injured and dead young people and teacher of Columbine H. S. in Colorado.

Prayers for their families.

Prayers for the medical teams and medical support staff charged with the care of the injured and those touched by this event.

Prayers for those who committed this terrible act and for their families and friends who will forever live with the loss and guilt.

Prayers for the known and unknown needs of all those in the community and in America for our youth, parents, teachers, advisors, counselors, law enforcement officers, investigators, legal advisors and prosecutors, school teachers and administrators who have decisions to make for the well-being of ALL of America's Children.

Dear Father in Heaven:
You know the reason this calamity has been brought to this community (and America) You know who must step forward to be a Witness to the Light not the darkness of this time We ask for Strength, Comfort, and Assurance to those who suffer In Your Son's Holy Name We present our Prayers and Supplications
Amen

Kristina Aldrup, Internet PrayerLine
NHUMCpray@aol.com
Northern Hills United Methodist Church
San Antonio, TX

LCMS WORLD MISSION
The Global Gospel Outreach of
The Lutheran Church -- Missouri Synod
____________________________________________

LCMS PASTOR HELPS VICTIMS OF SCHOOL SHOOTING

Rev. Steve Lee has been ministering to students, families and peace officers involved with the Columbine High School shootings in Littleton. Lee is the executive director of Peace Officer Ministries, located in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

In a phone conversation with Rev. Steve Hughey of LCMS World Mission on Friday afternoon, Lee said, "I was with the first SWAT team into the high school and was able to pray with several students before they died. It's been a tough week, but that's why our ministry exists--to help in situations like this.

"I feel that God put me here to help the hurting and to share the Gospel with people who are very receptive at this time. I've been able to work with many different law enforcement people during this whole ordeal. Tell the church to pray for me and my staff as we continue to minister in the coming days. And since we've had many extra expenses during this week related to the shootings at the high school, we really need any financial help that God's people are able to give."

Peace Officer Ministries brings the saving and strengthening Gospel of Jesus Christ to as many as possible--and especially to peace officers and their families--through the medium of law enforcement chaplaincy. Peace Officer Ministries is a registered non-profit organization and a member of the Association of Lutheran Mission Agencies (ALMA). Checks can be made out to Peace Officer Ministries and sent to 8240 Brigantine Drive, Colorado Springs, CO 80920. Rev. Lee is an LCMS pastor and former missionary with LCMS World Mission.

VERY IMPORTANT! I WISH THAT PARENTS AND ADULTS WOULD FIGURE OUT WHAT THIS YOUNG LADY HAS REALIZED BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE AND WE LOSE MORE OF OUR CHILDREN. - Crystal Owings

From Where I Stand:
A Teenager's Voice from Inside the Culture of Death
by Sarah Roney
April 21, 1999

On April 20, 1999, there was yet another gruesome shooting in Littleton, Colorado. Kids killing kids. And again, the entire nation in its uproar is trying to figure out why.

I am eighteen years old. I live in a small town near Madison, Wisconsin. A small town just like the ones where these horrifying shootings always seem to take place. Every time those stories come on the television, I can't help but notice how easily it could be my small town next. And I want to know why this is happening just as badly as any parent or police chief or anchorman.

The thing is, I am right in the middle of it. I am in the same age group as all of these high school kids. So I may have some insight for the world that has been otherwise unattainable since these shootings started some years ago.

The night of the Littleton shooting, as I was flipping through the various news channels that were covering the story in Littleton, Colorado, I heard something that struck a chord in me. An anchorman was interviewing the mother of a victim in the Jonesboro shooting. His question was: "If you look at America in the 1950's, you will find that this kind of thing never happened; whereas if you look at America today, this kind of thing is becoming more and more frequent. Why do you think this is happening?"

The woman, of course, could not answer the question. In fact, she didn't really even try. But I did. I thought about it for a long time that night. And again the next morning, when my favorite morning radio talk show asked its listeners why they thought this has been happening. Many people said it's the parents of the kids. Many people suggested television and video games. Many people even turned to popular musicians, looking to put the blame somewhere.

But I will tell you what I think it is. What I, a regular teenager riding on the coattails of Generation X, blame it on. It is not the parents or the movies or the rock stars. It is AMERICA. It is this culture of death, this culture in which liberals and feminists and activists are so anxious to let anything be "OK" that the once tightened, knotted rope of society is unraveling right beneath us.

Don't you see? There can be no order without discipline. All of those things people think are causing children to run into a school and shoot their teachers and peers and even kids they don't know—the movies, the video games, the parents, the rap artists—they are only REFLECTIONS of our society. Society breaks down, from one big metaphoric "family" into 50 metaphoric "families" and so on and so on, until you have the actual FAMILY, the one with the parents and the kids and the dog. It is not one thing or two things; it is the attitude of an entire "familiar" nation being reflected back at us in the kids.

Just as that anchorman suggested, something was different about the 1950's. WE WERE CONSERVATIVE. We had boundaries; we had a definite knowledge of right and wrong throughout the entire nation. We didn't have feminists pushing women so hard to go get a job that a woman who didn't have a job was somehow "bad," thereby leaving kids at home with inadequate parental guidance and often times with parents who were truly unhappy. We didn't have liberals fighting so avidly to legalize everything that it was at the point of completely blurring the line between good and bad. We didn't have a nationwide media surge dedicated to sex and violence so intense that if you weren't playing killing video games at age 14, then you were trying to choose between contraceptives beforehand or abortion afterwards. We didn't have disputes over whether or not we should help someone who is dying die sooner—over whether or not we should ASSIST them in committing SUICIDE.And we certainly didn't have a President who was in favor of NATO bombing and killing children in Serbia come on the television to grieve the loss for the families of children killed in America.

We live in a loosely tied society, a culture dedicated to death. If you don't want the kid, kill it. If you don't want to live out the rest of your God-given days, kill yourself. Or better yet, have someone else come help you do it. I guess, no matter how horrible or gruesome or gut-wrenching it may be, it was just a matter of time before someone got that "killing-as-a-means-to-an-end" idea stuck in their head for the part between birth and death as well. Everything that happens in families and cities and states and countries is the mirror image of the big picture. We are falling apart as a society. Am I—some random normal teenager in Farmertown, U.S.A.—the only one who sees that? It's sad and it's hard to believe, but what's worse is that it's scary.

I think it's time for our--America's--Mom and Dad to ground us--to say, "If you don't shape up by the time I count to three..." And then really count to three. Because we are running wild and pretty soon we're going to be too far from home to ever get back.

There was once a great saying by a famous man that has rung true throughout the history of mankind—in every family and in every society and in every social group and in every religion—it was a frighteningly true statement that cannot be disputed. I am reminded of it now, in the wake of yet another indescribably tormenting result of a nation gone haywire...

"By their fruits you shall know them."

Martyrs for the Faith
Submitted by Ron Cusano,
Shiloh Ministries

Editor'd Note: This story is quite similar (almost identical) to the one here. We received them from different sources and they were published in different papers.

Dear Friends in Christ!
Someone just passed this along to me. As the last days of this age unfold, the enemy's rage will be directed against all who name the name of Christ. This was just the tip of the iceberg!

Ron Cusano,
Shiloh Ministries

Killers may have been targeting Christians at Columbine/ 'Yes, I believe in God': The last word of 17-year-old Christian student before being shot to death

Weekend News Today
By Staff Writer
Source: Washington Times

Sat Apr 24 , 1999 -- A Columbine killer pointed his gun at Cassie Bernall and asked her the life-or-death question: "Do you believe in God!" She paused. The gun was still there. "Yes, I believe in God," she said. That was the last thing this 17-year-old Christian would ever say. The gunman asked her "Why?" She had no time to answer before she was shot to death.

Cassie entered the Columbine High School library to study during lunch. She left a martyr. Though lots of fellow Columbine students already were strong, vocal Christians, Cassie's confession in the face of death has inspired them to keep the faith no matter how bad it gets. "She did something that one of the thieves did when Jesus was on the cross. She admitted she believed in Jesus Christ before she died," said Joshua Lapp, a 16 year-old Columbine sophomore and member of St. Philip Lutheran Church.

Crouched in the library, hiding from the gunmen, he listened as Cassie was shot to death after confession. How would he have reacted? "I would've done the same thing she did," Joshua said.

"She died for her faith. That's why she died and that's how she lived her whole life. She was a martyr for Jesus," said Crystal Woodman, a Columbine junior and member of Cassie's youth group at West Bowles Community Church.

The killers may have been targeting Christians at Columbine. Two other victims of the massacre were known for their outspoken faith. Rachel Scott, 17, was actively involved at both Orchard Road Christian Center and Celebration Christian Fellowship; she liked to listen to Christian music, hoped to become a missionary in Africa, and carried a Bible to school every day. John Tomlin, 16, was a member of Foothills Bible Church youth group and had traveled with his father last year on a missionary trip to build housing for a poor family in Mexico. Teen-agers such as Joshua and Crystal aren't blaming God for Tuesday's violence. They're thanking Him they're alive. "Everybody that made it out, they know they made it out for a reason, or somebody was watching out for them,"' Joshua said.

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