Lord, help us because we’re not helping ourselves

I’m seeing little children die at the hands of a madman — and not the first time for such an atrocity — and all I can do is grab some of the prayers they are loading onto the truck with the thoughts they’re also sending to Uvalde.

I am a big believer in prayer. I do it often. I love conversing with God, whether it’s sitting on a park bench or on a casual walk.

I’ve also certainly asked for my share of miracles, like creating a low-carb Pop Tart.

And now I’m asking for perhaps the miracle to end all miracles. Please put an end to mass shootings. Yes, I know I’m asking a lot, especially when we already have the power to do this ourselves, but clearly we are not going to.

I remember my dad used to say, “The Lord helps those who help themselves.” Problem is, we aren’t helping ourselves. If anything, we’re making the problem worse with excuse after excuse, avoiding the real problem.

Crazy people with guns are killing innocent people — especially kids. And each time it happens, we load up the thoughts and prayers and send them El Paso, Buffalo, Las Vegas, Sandy Hook, and now Uvalde, where 19 children and two teachers were murdered because a madman had no trouble getting his hands on a gun.

Americans have a right to bear arms, just not all Americans, like the ones who are killing children, minorities and countless undeserving others. 

Are criminals still going to find a way to get guns? Of course. Are car thieves still going to steal cars? Sure, but we lock them and have alarms on them nonetheless.

Why? Because it decreases the likelihood of them getting stolen.

There is no perfect solution and there likely never will be. However, doing nothing is certainly not the answer.

There is nothing wrong with responsible people owning a gun. Key word is responsible. These are folks who probably don’t mind getting the proper license, don’t mind the training that goes with getting said license, don’t mind going through a background and subsequent waiting period, are okay with locking it away when it’s not in use.

If you have nothing to hide, why object to a background check? What’s wrong with waiting a week or 10 days instead of buying it today, especially if that law is going to help prevent someone with deadly intentions from also getting it so soon.

Statistics show the vast majority of Americans want stronger gun laws. They want loopholes closed, more background checks, more safety measures.

No one wants to take away everyone’s guns. We do, however, want every loving parent to be able to keep, hug, and kiss their children.

The vast majority and frequency of these shootings could be stopped — and we all know who has the power to stop them. And we have the ability to replace those who won’t lift a finger to protect our children and grandchildren.

But for some reason we don’t do that. We dance around solutions, being careful not to offend certain people by making them think we want to step on “their rights.”

What about the rights of the children to live?

So, that is why, even though we as a society don’t deserve it, I’m praying for a favor. I’m asking you, God, to save us from ourselves. 

I certainly understand if you don’t. After all, why rescue us when, in all likelihood, we’ll just find another way to try and destroy each other? And, yes, I’ll probably come back to you then and ask for another favor.

I’m a big believer that one of the reasons we are on this planet is to help each other, to try and make each other’s lives a little better with our actions. Buying a cup of coffee at Starbucks? Leave $20 for the homeless to come in out of the cold and get a warm drink. In line at Dollar Tree? Pay for the few items the person has in line behind you.

And, most of all, let’s not kill each other.

In a career that has spanned decades, Rick Mauch has covered news, sports and everything in between. He has worked in virtually every aspect of media available and can’t wait to try even more as technology unleashes them.

Like the late Whitney Houston sang, I believe our children are our future. But first, we have to let them have a future, and it starts with protecting them from lunatics who want to pre-empt their lives.

So, back to my request. Throughout history you’ve performed many miracles, is one more too much to ask? 

Like I said, it doesn’t look like we’re going to fix things.