August 01, 2025
Reno, Nevada: A weekend's perspective
This past weekend Susan and I went to Reno, Nevada to rendezvous with our daughter and her beau. His parents summer in Reno, giving us a chance to meet them as well. It was a greatweekend. It was good to take a short break, to not have to travel very far, and to see our daughter and her boyfriend. And it was a delight to meet his parents. Our time together was all laughs and no awkward moments. And there was music. The parents are Blues musicians, and we got a chance to see an enthusiastically joyful performance by them with their son on drums. It was a most memorable weekend in all the best ways.
But you take the very good with the not-so-good. We stayed in a “resort, spa, and casino.” It was a sprawling complex. Our room was in the original tower of rooms and suites, now increased to three towers. Interconnecting them all was an expansive series of bars, restaurants, and casinos. The banks of electronic betting and gambling machines were seemingly endless: bright, loud, and seldom empty. This sort of sensory overload and densely packed humanity is not what I considered a great environment for relaxing. I suppose I was in the minority with that opinion among the scores of people who filled those places. And though not Las Vegas, Reno has no small number of hotels like the one where we stayed. And these Reno hotels attract thousands and thousands of people year around.
The Monday morning after we returned, one of Reno’s “resorts, spas, and casinos” was the sight of a tragic shooting—three dead and many wounded. That same day, another tragic shooting occurred in New York City. That day there were many more shooting deaths elsewhere. Our nation averages one gun death every 11 minutes. Most of what we hear about are the large, “loud” ones, broadcast on the news; almost always homicides. But for every two people killed by a gun, three will take their own life with a gun. Think of that, almost 60% of all gun deaths in our country are suicides. In the most recent year for which we have records, homicides were down (but still high), while suicides continue to increase. And this is true in many places around the world.
As I have written elsewhere, I grew up with guns. I am not opposed to their use for sport, though I believe gun access ought to be restricted. The majority of Americans, including many to most gun owners, agree. Yet they remain relatively easy to acquire. In a world of “resorts, spas, and casinos,” people are led to believe happiness is only one big win at a casino away, or some other short step away. If life was fair, they think, they would make that step. Further, mental illness and emotional instability are becoming more and more common; these people are the most susceptible to extreme responses to distress and disappointment. Statistically it is only a few of those people who are angry about their life not being fair that will turn to random acts of violence, often with a gun. More, however, will turn that gun on themselves. A silent, but greater, tragedy.
As a Christian community we ought to offer a distinct alternative to a view of the world that leads to despair and violence. We ought to offer a community of hope, self-worth, acceptance, forgiveness, and reconciliation. We ought to offer the gospel in all its breadth and depth which is a direct affront to many of the life-sapping values of our world, and their unrealistic expectations. We ought to offer a life filled with meaning and purpose, laughter and music. As Jesus declared, the life he offers is one of full, complete joy. (John 15:11)
Let us pray for Reno, for New York, for all those people around the world for whom violent acts, perpetrated or self-inflicted, have taken loved ones away from them. May they find solace in their grief. And may Christians of all types confront those elements in the world that seek to limit the life and well-being of any person. May it begin with us.
Might we pray—and live—to that end.
Have a good weekend,
~ Pastor Todd