Normally Shalom of Oakland does not send a mass email out just after a newsletter, but I've decided to break that rule for the first time in four years. I'm asking people who care about Shalom of Oakland and East Oakland in general to pray about the frequent gun violence we have experienced over the last couple of weeks.

People have shot at our neighbor's van in front of our house. Shots have been fired for no apparent reason at the house a couple doors down. This weekend, over 30 rounds were fired on 55th and Fairfax just a couple blocks from our new location, causing cars to crash into front yards. On Monday, James and I were cleaning our new place and heard the pop - pop - pop - pop - pop - pop - pop - pop - pop - pop that is becoming too familiar. Two men in a car had been shot in the back and lower torso just a block away. We watched them loaded onto stretchers and into an ambulance. A kind man who opened a health food store on the corner had a bullet in his entryway and a hole in the window from the bullet that had ricocheted through their place. Yesterday, on the way to pick up two young people from school and bring them to our discipleship group, I had to take the long way around since someone had been shooting across the street from Frick Middle School. We are getting used to yellow tape blocking streets and helicopters making our windows shake.

Would you pray that the gun violence would end? Would you pray that our friends throughout East Oakland would be safe?

After we pray, I hope that we can all consider how we can contribute to peace and safety. I just read through a book entitled, "Becoming the Answer to Our Prayers." So please pray for an end to the shootings, and then pray about how we can all contribute to peace and safety. How can we all contribute to fewer guns on the streets, better education for everyone, more mentors for young men and women, more jobs available, etc.? This makes me even more determined to transform our new storefront location into an oasis of beauty, peace, safety and creativity.

One more thing...for friends or family who might worry about our family, please don't. We are not particularly worried for our own safety. We are still glad to live here and enjoy life. (Our community group is even painting the exterior of our house on Saturday. Hooray!) We just want our neighbors to be safe, and we want to see our young friends grow up without gun shots as a normal part of life.


Grace and peace,

Nate Millheim for Shalom of Oakland