Do you Risk?

Who does not love a good story? A story of someone or some people down and out, less than in their walk of life, finally attaining freedom, attaining the career they dreamed about, attaining the best in their particular sport, in their particular gifting. It makes you feel you want to celebrate with them, to acknowledge that finally they have made it, that their dreams have come true.

And then there are the heroes. Doing it for others. Selflessly for mankind. Many who don’t receive any rewards or acknowledgements. Many who have been injured, hurt for their craft, for their compulsion to tell the truth, to tell the real stories.  

This was the story I read about a few days ago. One that brought tears to my eyes and an admiration for the man as I saw his photo. A normal human like you or me, but who went above and beyond to show the world the truth of the situation in Ukraine.

His name is Benjamin Hall. A British-American journalist who was injured a few months ago while his co-workers, an Irish and a Ukrainian journalist, both lost their lives trying to report on the conflict happening in Ukraine.

He’s back at work, minus a leg, minus the foot on the good leg, has little use of one hand and has lost the vision out of one eye, while his hearing has “fully blown.“

Yes, that is what I said – Back at work!

He shared about how “he felt pretty lucky to be here” and “the amazing people who had rescued him”, taking the focus off himself. Previously his assignments had led him to report on the conflicts in the Middle East, in Libya, Syria, Iraq, and Africa, in Somalia and Egypt.

His Irish colleague had worked in Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq and had been instrumental in getting out families and freelancers when the conflicts worsened. The Ukrainian journalist, “Sasha”, helped them to navigate the area around Kyiv, while helping her people by reporting on what was truly happening. But they are no longer, for they were ambushed in their car on their way to report on the conflicts of war.

Ben who was left said, “I am stronger than ever” and I am resolved to “never give up.” And that adversity could be overcome, “no matter how painful something is.”

“When you have to know there’s good on the other side, that if you work hard, if you dedicate yourself to getting somewhere and you don’t stop trying to achieve that, you will get that and no matter how painful something is, no matter how hard it is.”

~ Benjamin Hall

That attitude is spoken from a hero.

Both feet blasted off, shrapnel in his eye, damage to his hand and this is his response. Wow.

He said he was lying there badly injured and the thought of his three daughters made him open his eyes and decide he was going to make it. He would crawl if he had to. There is good on the other side, there was his children, his wife, there was the truth that needed to be told and this persuaded Ben to push, compelled him to risk…

Our God who is good, the ultimate in Good, the only Good — knowing this, knowing Him does it compel us to risk? …

To risk loving thy neighbour… our families, our friends, even if they reject us…

To risk crawling if we must, to show the love of God to others, to report on what God has done and is wanting to do in people’s lives?????

It made me question – Am I developing a persevering spirit?

Ben’s love for his children made him push through the pain, the injuries to get home. And now the love for truth is pushing him through the pain of returning to work……

Does my love for Jesus compel me to push through the pain that might arise?

Does my wanting people to know the Way, the Truth and the Life push me to tell them somehow?

Sometimes the only way to get through it, whatever that “it“ is, is to press through it. Pressing requires effort, focus, determination, courage and commitment. That’s what a hero does. These traits are seen in the MARVEL SUPER “MAKEBELIEVE” HEROES but also in the ordinary heroes of this day and age. Heroes like Ben and his co-workers who wanted the world to know what truly was happening so that people could be rescued, so that something could be done……

It’s often in the pressing that our faith muscles are being developed.

Despite our circumstances we look for the good, maybe on the other side of this but definitely a hope for the future. That’s what Ben showed me. A persevering spirit of hope for good, for the future.

Do you have a persevering spirit of hope? Of faith? That God will come through.

May these jottings from my journal inspire you to believe in and fall in love with Christ- the hope of the world, as stated in Jeremiah 17:7, ‘Blessed is the man who believes and trusts in and relies on the Lord and whose hope and confident expectation is the Lord!’

Love

Rosemary

Every week groups of ladies meet together to chat about the things I raise in my weekly blog post and to chat about life in general. We call these ‘Heart Connect’ groups. If you would like more information please click HERE.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Does your love for Jesus compel you to risk for Him? That risk could be to show love to a neighbour who might be grumpy or to forgive a friend who has wronged you.

Do you have a persevering spirit of hope? Do you have hope and faith that God will come through for you? If not, why? What can you do to press into that hope?