My wife has been asked to share her testimony with a women's group from the church. She was asked several months ago and this is the weekend that she'll be doing that. She is the kind of person that writes stuff like that out so that she remembers all of what she wants to say. The other night she asked me to listen as she read what she wrote.
As she recounted a story that after nearly 20 years of marriage, is pretty familiar to me, a story of parents who would rather drink than parent, of violence and anger--her mother attempting suicide etc. I was once again reminded of how God has always provided people who love her and cared for her. I am so thankful for many people that I've never met and won't this side of heaven. They enabled a young girl to experience God's love through them and to discover His love for her.
Time and time again throughout the years that we've been together we've seen God use the pain and suffering in her life to enable her to speak to others in pain. She would tell you it wasn't that bad and since she lived it she felt like it was pretty normal. Writing it and then reading it she sees God's hand woven throughout her life guiding and leading and protecting even in difficult times and allowing her to learn to minister to others that are hurting.
Paul wrote to the church in Corinth "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God."
God allows things to happen to us that don't seem to make sense but He also sustains us through those things and then they become tools in His toolbox as others need help.
May you comfort someone with His love today
Yesterday was an interesting day. I went out to to drop zone, not to jump, but because the jump was the major training event of the day and I believe that as a battalion chaplain I need to be where the major training events for my unit are taking place. The jump was a pretty typical one for where I serve. It was supposed to be from a CASA 212, a small cargo aircraft that holds 12 jumpers. We were scheduled to do 12 lifts of jumpers and put out a total of 130 people. Not all of the lifts, if you're doing the math, would have 12 jumpers on them but you get the idea of how it was supposed to work.
The weather, we knew before hand, was going to be a little sketchy, the clouds were low so we had to wait for them to lift. Hours went by and on most days the jump would have been scratched. Yesterday, however, the aircraft and the drop zone were both available all day. The block time (the time we're supposed to jump) was extended and as the clouds slowly rose it became apparent that we may get to jump after all.
The problem for some people, however, was that they had scheduled the jump in the morning and, anticipating that it would be finished, had other things that they had to do in the afternoon. Here and there people had to leave the dropzone. Pretty soon the Primary Jumpmaster (The person running the jump) came up to me and asked if I could perform a safety duty in the aircraft since the person who was going to do that on the first three lifts needed to go. I said sure and began preparations to do that. In the early afternoon the aircraft finally arrived and we began jumping. I did the safetly duty on the first three lifts and then left the aircraft to begin helping to get the other jumpers ready for their jumps. By now the sun was shining beautifully and the winds were pretty calm and it had turned into a beautiful afternoon to enjoy jumping out of an airplane. As I walked over to where the other jumpers were I was asked, again by the Primary Jumpmaster if I wanted to jump, I said "let me get my helmet, what lift am I on" and proceeded to have a great jump.
After the jump finished, one of our NCO's received her Senior Parachutist Wings. That meant that she had at least 30 jumps and was a jumpmaster and had done several qualifying jumps in the processes to meet that level. We celebrated with her as only Paratroopers will understand.
As I drove home I was reflecting on what turned out to be a really fun and rewarding day when I didn't think I'd really have anything to do with the jump. How often does God do that for us? All we need to do is make ourselves available and be qualified to do what He has for us and He will provide the blessings.
Paul wrote to Timothy "Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work" (2 Timothy 3:21)
When we are qualified and available, He is able to do good things through us.
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