On Sunday, July 13, two women were shot and killed at Richmond Road Baptist Church in Lexington, Kentucky. Three other victims — two church members and one state trooper — were injured and are currently undergoing medical care.

While authorities now believe the shooter, 47-year-old Guy House, had some connection to the people at the church, the shooting first started after a state trooper pulled him over for a license plate reader alert. When the trooper pulled House over, House shot him, injuring him before taking off and carjacking a vehicle. Then he showed up on the church’s property. According to a statement one of the victim’s family members gave to CBS News, House came into the church to look for one of Beverly Gumm’s daughters, who is allegedly the mother of his three children. After being told she was not there, he opened fire, killing Gumm, 72, and her daughter, Christina Combs, 34. He also shot Gumm’s husband, the pastor of Richmond Road Baptist Church, and Combs’s husband, injuring them both. Lexington police soon shot and killed House, ending his shooting spree.

“Violence like this has no place in our commonwealth or country,” Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear (D) later posted on X. “Please join Britainy and me as we pray for the families of those lost, each one a child of God gone too soon. Thank you to the @lexkypolice and @kystatepolice for their brave efforts today. Kentucky, let’s stand strong together and support our Lexington neighbors during this difficult time.”

“It’s heartbreaking to see churches targeted by acts of violence,” David Closson, director of Family Research Council’s Center for Biblical Worldview, reflected. “While motives can vary case by case, what’s becoming increasingly clear is that many of these attacks are not random.”

This shooting comes just a few weeks after church members in Wayne, Michigan, stopped a shooting at CrossPointe Community Church during their children’s Vacation Bible School. After he saw a man wearing a tactical vest, carrying a long gun and a handgun, deacon Richard Pryor rammed his pickup truck directly into the man. The shooter, who the police later identified as 31-year-old Brian Anthony Browning, opened fire at Pryor’s truck but miraculously missed hitting Pryor. The church’s safety team responded instantly when they heard the gunshots. They started firing at the gunman and eventually killed him, while he only managed to shoot one of the safety team members in the leg.

Just a few days after the Michigan shooting, Adam Scheafe, 51, admitted to killing and mock-crucifying Arizona pastor Bill Schonemann. He said he had planned to kill 14 other Christian leaders, believing that their trust in Jesus as God was idolatry.

“[W]hen churches [and Christians] are targeted, as tragic and outrageous as it is, it aligns with what Jesus told us to expect: opposition from a world that resists the light of the gospel,” Closson pointed out. “Jesus Himself warned His followers in John 15 that ‘the world hates you’ because it first hated Him. He went on to say in John 16:2 that ‘a time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God.’ These words were spoken to prepare His disciples for the reality of living faithfully in a fallen world.”

Closson encouraged Christians not to give in to despair or fear at the same time as they are praying and grieving for their brothers and sisters in Christ.

“We know that evil does not have the final word,” Closson reminded Christians. “We continue to gather, to worship, and to bear witness to Christ, even in the face of threats. We also seek wisdom which includes taking appropriate precautions to protect our congregations while never compromising the gospel we proclaim. Ultimately, our response is one of sober resolve: we cling to Christ, remain faithful, love our enemies, and remember that Jesus has overcome the world” (John 16:33).

Evelyn Elliott serves as an intern for Family Research Council.