Today I am thankful for the wounded warriors. Not the ones in the U.S. army or other branches of our military, but the ones who have given their lives on the battlefield of God's mission.
Today, I remember Ryan. It's been a year since he went ahead of us, but his love and compassion changed our world forever.
Today, I remember Nancy whose time in Africa was cut so short. I remember Cindy. I remember Kathy.
None of us, when we left for the mission field, imagined so many lives cut short in auto accidents. We'd read the stories of Jim Elliott and his crew, murdered and martyred by the Auca Indians. Their deaths and their wives lives ushered in the redemption of a tribe. Maybe we thought about that kind of sacrifice, noble but unlikely. Maybe we thought of the dangers of malaria and cholera and (much less exotic sounds) worms. But car accidents? Where is the sense in that?
I want to glean meaning from these lives cut short. I want to know it was all for the greater good, but sometimes I'm not invited in to witness and understand the back side of history's tapestry. In my own wisdom, I think it would be better if Ryan was still here. I miss him. But I'm grateful that the time he spent here, he spent for good.
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.
Hebrews 12:1-2
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