I started a post yesterday about the emergency workers that were on the scene of the Metrolink crash, but had trouble finding adequate words. I have great admiration for the women and men in uniform who put their own lives in peril for the rest of us. When the calls goes out, they come. They head into danger while others flee. And most of the time we never learn their names as they go about doing their jobs.
Pastor White brought it all into focus in this morning's service. There are people in our services whose lives have experienced a train wreck. When they make their way to the altar, our duty as Christians is to be first responders. We may not know the circumstances, but just kneeling next to a hungry soul instead of burying our faces makes a difference in those critical first moments.
I thought this quote from today's LA Times was an accurate description:
"There was so much to do in such a short time frame," Los Angeles Police Assistant Chief Jim McDonnell said. "The thing I'm left with is a tremendous tragedy, of course, but also an acknowledgment of the training and the relationship that exists among first responders. It was critical. And in this case it saved many lives."
2 comments:
HI Sissy McElhaney!!! Oh, it's just been too long since I've visited your blog, and boy have I missed a lot of interesting and inspirational posts. As for this particular post, you said it so perfectly, and as Pastor White was addressing the congregation about it, guilt hit me because there are times when I succumb to my own personal turmoil (when I could be doing that during my personal prayer time), and when I look up to see that there are visitors sitting there unattended, or at the altar, I feel such guilt at neglecting them. It was the "first responders" that so encouraged me to keep on praying when I was that first time visitor.
Since I play the piano during altar a lot, I see what happens when first responders are there and when they are not. We definitely have to keep our personal prayer lives in order so we can be strong for our visitors.
Post a Comment