Posts
Tranquility
It really was a beautiful day. The sun was out. The temperatures were great. The rain that seemed to have lasted all through October was finally gone. It was the kind of day to go fishing or sit on your porch in your rocking chair. Get a glass of tea and listen to the birds for a few more times before they disappear for the winter to wherever it is they go from north Texas
However, shortly after lunch the beautiful day stopped. It had turned ugly. It seemed as though the birds had stopped singing and the sun had gone away for a great long time. Something worse than rain had come. Evil had entered the day. Evil in the form of one very confused and lost person at Ft. Hood Army base in Texas
What do you do to get that back? Is it possible? Are there words you can say to a spouse, to the children? How will you tell the parents who were so proud and yet so fearful for their child’s safety in a war zone that their child had been killed before they ever got there?
In our hectic society, tranquil days are so hard to come by anyway. How do you go about getting one back when it is yanked away so violently? We are indeed reminded that each breath is a gift from the Creator, each kiss from our loved one a priceless blessing beyond measure. Life is truly fleeting, but you already knew that, didn’t you?
We just want to claw our way back to the moment we had right before we knew, once again, that the world has evil in it.
Jesus told us he would indeed send a Comforter. Lord, we need that Comforter right now. Jesus promised us peace, but denied us the kind of peace that we so often look for in our world. He offers a strength through, but not a way around. We are called to walk through the pain. We are reminded that there is no bridge over the Valley of the Shadow of Death. No, we are called, so many times, to walk straight into it. Why would we ever enter such a place? We must continue the search for a way over, or around, or . . .
We go through the Valley of the Shadow because that is where Christ will meet us. “For thou art with me, thy rod and staff (the symbols of protection and guidance) comfort me.
Pastor Craig
I have thought so often over the last few days about the Lembkes and how it must feel to watch other peoples' sons come home at last. I remember the Scherrys every time a deployment ends at Camp LeJeune. ...And now I think of all those parents and children and husbands and wives who thought they were "home-free" at Fort Hood after a deployment. We never really know when we are about to enter the Valley of the Shadow.... We have to make every day we have with the people we love "count." Never leave or hang up without saying "I love you." Don't wait to say, "I'm sorry." We are all just on a deployment to Earth. It is dangerous here. Our greatest comfort is to know we share a faith in Christ with those we love----so that we all go Home together one day.
ReplyDeleteYes, you are right. There is no bridge OVER the valley of the shadow of death. But the measure of true faith is found as we walk on through. We quiver, shiver and shake...but if we trust and never doubt, he will surely bring us out--as we used to sing in that old hymn.."each victory will help you, some other to win!"...
ReplyDelete