Identifying Open Gates and Doors

A Six-Year-Old and an Open Door

In January 2023, a six-year-old boy in Newport News, Virginia, shot his first-grade teacher. Think about that. Six years old.

A child that age does not wake up one morning with murder in his heart on his own. Something had access to him. Something was within his reach.

The law said he was too young to be charged. But the court did hold an adult accountable for what was left within a child’s reach.

I watched the video, and it troubled my spirit. I won’t pretend to know what was in that child’s heart. But I know this: a six-year-old does not form that kind of defiance alone. It has to come from somewhere. And when I see a child that young with that much hardness, I don’t see a monster. I see a door that was opened long before he ever picked up a gun.

It Begins with Us

We can shake our heads and say, “What is wrong with these kids?” Or we can ask the question that matters: Where were the open doors?

It begins with us. When we don’t discipline our children, and when we don’t pay attention to what is entertaining and teaching them, we leave the gate open. And the enemy never walks through a gate just to stand in the doorway.

“The rod and reproof give wisdom: but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame.” (Proverbs 29:15)

What is he watching? What is he hearing? Who is speaking into him? What is within his reach? If we don’t know the answers, somebody else is already training him.

Mercy for the Boy

That little boy is not a monster. He is a child who needs the same mercy we pray for every young soul, and his story isn’t over either. His teacher is a woman who needs our prayers for her healing, too. Both of them are covered in the blood of Jesus whether they know it or not, and we can stand in the gap for them.

Close the Gate

1. Walk through your home and find the open doors. Look at what is accessible, what is being watched, and what is being spoken.

2. Lock up what needs locking, in the natural and in the spirit.

3. Discipline in love. Don’t be afraid to say no. A child does not need a parent who is cool, but one who is covering him.

4. Cover your children by name in the blood of Jesus every day.

5. Pray for the families touched by this, the boy, his teacher, and everyone who loved them.

Father, in the Name of Jesus, we shut every door the enemy has walked through in our children’s lives. Forgive us where we were not watching. Give us the wisdom to guard our gates and the courage to train our children in Your Word. Heal the teacher, cover the boy, and let mercy rewrite this story. In Jesus Name. Amen.