It was his attitude, however, that always carried him through troubles.”
              –Robert J. Thomas  (The Reckoning)

    “And if you address as Father the One who judges impartially based on each one’s work, you are to conduct yourselves in reverence during this time of temporary residence.”
              –1 Peter 1:17 (HCSB)
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Many years ago, a good friend of mine who was a Marine wrote in a book he gave me when I left Baton Rouge.  Since that time I have transcribed it into my Bible.  C.J. certainly understood the words of Paul, and whether a person served in Asia or another continent the words still ring true.

         “For we don’t want you to be unaware, brothers, of our affliction that took place in the province of Asia:  we were completely over-whelmed–beyond our strength–so that we even despaired of life.”
                    –2 Corinthians 1:8 (HCSB)

War, conflict, battles can bring one quickly to despair.  Life itself can be a struggle.  It may be from a device planted in the road that explodes while the vehicle in which you are riding hits it.  It may be that while you are ready to throw a phosphorus grenade and bullet hits it while still in your hand and you are burned beyond recognition as in the case of Dave Roever.  It may be while in the depths of the jungle, in your foxhole and enemy crawls in during the night and you must fight for your life.  Take all of these and transfer them to the spiritual.  The devil is trying to destroy, maim, kill, and raise havoc in your life.
    I have made it a point to study the lives and conditions of the POWs in Vietnam.  I have several books and have talked with a few of these stalwart men.  It so happened that this week, in my devotions, I came across the story of Ralph Gaither.  I have his book, “With God In A POW Camp.”  In the devotion it was mentioned that he “thought he had faith, but after months in the camp he felt it wasn’t working.  He prayed for physical relief from his suffering, but only felt the cold, the hunger, and the pain more intensely.  He tried to thank God for what he had, but found himself hating everything–his cell, the darkness, the guards, the pitiful food–with growing intensity.  God did not seem to be listening.”  (Larkin Spivey)
    One day, he remember the words of his favorite hymn, “Amazing Grace.”  For three days, he was on his knees praying.  During his prayers his thoughts went to Job, his suffering, and through all of it he never lost his faith.  Gaither came to the point where he said, “I had a confidence in my heart that told me God would give me the strength and patience I needed.”
    Another prisoner, Robinson Risner, wrote in his book “The Passing of the Night” (which I believe everyone should read, and read again) “To make it, I prayed by the hour.  It was automatic, almost subconscious.  I did not ask God to take me out of it.  I prayed he would give me strength to endure it.  When it would get so bad that I did not think I could stand it, I would ask God to ease it and somehow I would make it.  He kept me.”
    No matter the situation that you find yourself in, God is there.  It may not be actual combat or the conditions of a POW, but you are in dire straits of one thing or another.  God is there.  Never give up, not matter the adversity.  In these times, do not try to do penance to get God to hear you; He does not need your good deeds.  He simply wants you to grasp hold of His amazing grace.

A man can be judged by those who hate him.”
              –Louis L’Amour  (A Man Called Noon)

    “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”
              John 7:24 (NKJV)
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MAINTAIN THE RAGE!
    What has happened?  Have we been lulled to sleep and lost our vigilance?  What will be the price paid for that, another 9/11-type disaster?  Now it seems that instead of being alert we have become buddies.  Why we even elect Muslims to Congress which I cannot figure for how can they take an oath on the Bible and how they can take an oath to uphold the Constitution, for many of Muslim beliefs contradict it.  I guess it should be, “Maintain the Status Quo”.
    I almost named today’s Echo, the Echo of the Twin Towers.  Can you hear the sound of the planes flying into the buildings?  Can you hear the buildings tremble and reverberate as they fell?  Walk the area, are there echoes from ground zero where the thousands died?  Listen, listen carefully, or have our ears become dull to that as well?
    The other day I was reading and came upon a little note.  It may not be profound but it is something that we should ponder.  Those hours after the attack there was fear.  What was going to happen next?  And of course, the media pundits launched their attack against President Bush.  But stop and recall for a moment the next twenty-four hours after the attack.

         *I would never ever want another 9/11, but I miss the America of 9/12.
         *Stores rans out of flags to sell because they were being flown everywhere.
         *People were Americans before they were upper or lower class, Jewish or Christian, Republican or Democrat.
         *We hugged people without caring if they ate at Chick-Fil-A or wore Nikes.
         *On 9/12, what mattered most was what united us, than what divided us.

I remember one more thing very distinctly–Congress on the steps of the Capitol singing “God Bless America.”  Now that song has been excluded form some of the ballparks.  What has happened?  Whether you want to believe it or not there are still terrorists out there looking for America to fall, planning our demise.  Those working in our governments are among them.  Ponder in solemnity the words of President Bush.

              “Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of America.  These acts shattered steel, but they cannot dent the steel of American resolve.  America was targeted for attack because we’re the brightest beacon for freedom and opportunity in the world.  And no one will keep that light from shining.”

              “It is said that adversity introduces us to ourselves.  This is true of a nation as well.”

              “The deliberate and deadly attacks which were carried out yesterday against our country we’re more than acts of terror.  They were acts of war.”

We cannot become nonchalant.  If nothing else it is our duty to pray for our leadership and our military.  Woe to the world if America crumbles.

Life can have its moments.”
              –Lou Bradshaw  (Hickory Jack)

    “We should like you, our brothers, to know something of what we went through in Asia. At that time we were completely overwhelmed, the burden was more than we could bear, in fact we told ourselves that this was the end.”
              –2 Corinthians 1:8 (Phillips)
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Tears, we all have them, from the days of childhood when a toy was broken or we felt the hand of a parent on the backside, there were tears.  On into the teenage years and there are tears of sorrow, of young love, of broken relationships.  Then through the years of adulthood, parenting, seeing loved ones depart across the Great Divide; these all brought tears.
    Some people cry in an instant.  I’ve had many students sit before me with crocodile tears.  I remember one student who would come to my office, and I would let her cry.  After a few minutes of that, I barked at her, “That’s enough.”  She cut them off, and never shed another one.  There are those people who find it difficult to shed a tear, but inside the tears are flooding the heart.  General Eisenhower said that he reserved his tears for his pillow.  They were private and not to be shown to the public.  There are catastrophes that may strike us, especially in areas where we felt the strongest that may produce grief and despair, and we feel cut off from God.

         “All through the night I wept full sore,
          But morning brought relief.
          That hand, which broke my bones before,
          Then broke my bonds of grief.”
                   –Charles H. Spurgeon

This morning let’s take a look at Psalm 30:1-5 (HCSB).  This portion is a psalm about tears.

    1 – I will exalt You, Lord, because You have lifted me up and have not allowed my enemies to triumph over me.
    2 – Lord my God, I cried to You for help, and You healed me.
    3 – Lord, You brought me up from Sheol; You spared me from among those going down to the Pit.
    4 – Sing to Yahweh, you His faithful ones, and praise His holy name.
    5 – For His anger lasts only a moment, but His favor, a lifetime. Weeping may spend the night, but there is joy in the morning.

Here, David praised the Lord that he was not vanquished.  The Lord was there for him in his time of need and despair.  I like verse one from the NIV, “I will exalt you, O LORD, for you lifted me out of the depths and did not let my enemies gloat over me.”  We need not despair, our enemies will not be there to gloat over us.  They will not stand and point a finger and sneer at us, for the Lord will lift us up.  No matter how deep a hole we have fallen into the Lord will reach down to lift us up.
    In one aspect when we think of night we think of the darkness and the unknown that may stalk us in the night.  But night can also represent, in the spiritual sense, a vanquished foe.  Do not despair when we find ourselves in the dark of the night; remember, there is a brighter tomorrow.  W. Graham Scroggie said, “At nightfall Weeping comes as a guest to tarry, but in the morning Joy comes to stay.”
    Let me ask you, what does the future hold for those who put their faith in the Lord?  One thing for sure, when we are in a hole, when we are downcast and darkness looms over us there is hope.  Grace becomes more and more important.  Perhaps the grace of God cannot be appreciated until you sense a need for it.  You may weep, moan, cry, and groan all night in despair.  It may seem that all hope is gone and that this calamity you find yourself in will last a lifetime, but look up, redemption draws nigh.  There is joy in the morning!