And there I was . . .
Recently, I had taken Cindy to see the Ortho doctor at Tennova Turkey Creek. We had finished at the doctor and I had wheeled Cindy back down to the valet to pick up our car. While we were waiting, a man struck up a conversation with us. It must have taken a while to get the car because by the time the valet returned we had finished with broken legs and gotten around to helicopters crashing.
Yeah, I know. I don’t see the connection either.
Anyway, the man was relating to us the story of a friend of his who had died in a helicopter accident. The friend was the pilot flying by the way. The man said he wondered what those last few moments must have been like for his friend. Being the smart aleck that I am, I quickly quipped that he would have said something like, “Oh darn . . . “
The man looked sharply up at me and calmly said, “I think he would have said, ‘Father forgive me’.”
As he looked at me, I felt my own helicopter inside doing a slow spiral down to hide behind the nearest bush. Because I knew immediately, he was right.
“Father forgive me.”
So that’s one experience. The other one is somewhat related. Probably like broken legs and helicopter crashes but you never know. I may get them linked together!
Way back when, when I was in the Navy and later still in the aviation community, we often picked at each other. Looking for vulnerabilities that once found would then be relentlessly exploited to hopefully get a ‘rise’ out of someone.
The Petty Officer 2nd class that I worked for back then was a professional at that. He would send me off to get something and then just before I got out of sight, he would yell for me to come back. When I returned and asked what he needed, he would say “Nothing. I just wanted to see how far I could pull %^#$ without a string.” It was funny to everyone else and you just had to go along with it and laugh too. Because if you didn’t it would just get worse.
I too fell into that habit of voicing sarcasm, trying to make fun of someone or at least make jest at their situation. Since I’ve left that environment and joined the one that I have now with my fellow Christians I do not have to live like that anymore.
Here we lift one another up in prayer and in fellowship we support one another. And when I slip and fall back into that roll of making a wisecrack, I immediately feel ashamed for having done it.
I am so happy to be here with you. To enjoy this Christian fellowship.
Did you know that Barbara Elkins with great delight every month, every week, every day sends out birthday cards and such for all of our Church family? She does.
She painstakingly addresses the cards, writes short messages to the recipient and sends them on their way. This is her ministry and she does it so well. I know.
Because I got my birthday card the other day and it LIFTED me. I felt so good after reading the card and her short message.
Thank you Jesus! Thank you God, for bringing me to my Church home where I am both loved and built up, rather than being torn down.
And thank you Mrs. Elkins for following Jesus’s commandment.
John 15:12 – This is my commandment, that ye love one another as I have loved you.