A Good Day for Celebrating

  There is so much “shaking the world” today.  Some of it literally!!  I understand my hometown area had a 4.5 earthquake this morning.  Amazing!  I lived in Oklahoma for most of 20 years and never felt even a tremble.  It was our reply to folks from California. 

They’d say, “Man, I couldn’t handle all those tornadoes!” 

We’d reply, “Tornados… at least we don’t have earthquakes!”

  So much for that line.  Anyday the big one could hit and half of Oklahoma could fall off into Texas (or maybe Kansas? Arkansas?).

   Here in Mississippi our world is shaking with joy this morning.  The love of my son’s life said “Yes” last night.  We are real excited.  My wife and daughter are particularly happy.  With three sons, one daughter, and one son-in-law in the family the “estrogen” levels have always been pretty low.  They knew though, one day things would begin to even out.  Looks like that day is at hand.  I can’t wait, I have never been the father of the groom before, and I am really excited about the young lady who is to be our daughter-in-law.

  Of course, the big news in the world, for everyone else, is the rescue of the miners in Chile.  After two months of being trapped thousands of feet in the ground they will all back on top of “terra firma” today.  Half are already in the arms of family and loved ones.  It is an exciting day.  Sometimes our best efforts work right.  You can’t help but cheer for the families of these “heros.”

  “Heros” is what they were called on CNN, and I guess they are.  Two months with millions of tons of earth above you, nowhere to go, waiting in the dark… just keeping your mind together is a pretty heroic act.  What do you think about in the quiet moments 2000 feet underground?  One fellow was only on his fourth day of working in the mine… what is he thinking?  He barely had a chance to get past the claustrophobia of a newbie before being shut in.  Another had been urged by his wife to quit the morning before the explosion.  Don’t you know he longed to hear those three beautiful words,“Told you so.”  What did they do to pass time?  (You know, being in Chile, what they really needed was a soccer ball.)  There is something definitely heroic about endurance.

 But, I couldn’t help but think of two other heros.  We know the names of the miners, they will be celebrities… but I have not heard these two men’s names mentioned.

  After they drilled the 2000 foot rescue tunnel and lined it with a stell sleeve, they sent the rescue capsule down on a test run.  They wanted to be sure it wouldn’t get hung up,  that no rocks would crash against it, or encounter other unforeseen problems sliding through the darkness of the steel sleeve inserted into the bored rock wall.  Once they were satisfied with the tube and the capsule, it was time… what everyone had been passionately anticipating for 69 days.  Go get the 33 miners.  They opened the capsule and one man climbed in and started down.  Two thousand feet later… he got out.  Florencio Avilos climbed in, the first of the miners to be rescued.  Once at the surface, a second rescuer climbed into the capsule and started back down into the pit.  These two unknown rescuers journeyed into the belly of the earth to see to it thirty-three others got out.

   Two men who used to be safe up in “Camp Hope,” nothing perilous was there to cause a moment’s anxious thought.  Last night they could have gone home, ate supper, and said a prayer that the rescue would finish up in joy.  Instead, by choice, they descended deep into the darkness after men who desperately needed a savior.  That is courage!  

   I don’t know who will be the last of the miners to surface, but, if all goes well, all thirty-three men will soon be back on the surface after sixty-nine days.  As the last miner enters the capsule there will be about forty-five minutes when the only two men left down there to save will be the two rescuers.  Perhaps the rest of us will pause to admire their courage.  What will be going through the mind of the last rescuer, sitting alone for that last, long half hour?   Two thousand feet above him will be families in cheers.  Newspaper folks will be putting together final copies.  Only one family will be left, anxiously waiting on pins and needles for their loved one to return… with a lot of pride.  They got them all out.  That’s heroic! 

Hope there is crowd hanging around for them.  Hope the bands play one tune for these two men who followed in the footsteps of the greatest hero of all…

   ”Be like Jesus… who, being in the very nature ‘God’ did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.  And being found in appearance as a man he humbled himself and became obedient unto death- even death on a cross.  Therefore, God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord… to the glory of God the Father.”  (Paul… Phil 2:5-9)

  One more note… they were really concerned about Mario Gomez.  At 63 he still worked the mines and his health reflected that.  So when it came time to pull him out they sent down special oxygen, and took special precaution.  As they began his twenty minute ride to the surface, they were particularly careful.  As they neared the surface one rescuer radioed him about how he was doing, how was his oxygen… did the mask help… did he have it on? 

 ”No,” he replied.

  Five minutes later, he stepped from the capsule into the arms of his wife.  Then, with outstretched arms,  he fell to the ground…  and prayed.

  Then they got an oxygen mask on him.

Its a good day for all of us to pray.