MY SON-IN-LAW GETS LOST ON THE RIVER
Matthew 18 verse 11 "For the Son of man is come to save that
which was lost."
On Sunday night, April 10th, 2005, I received a phone call from
my daughter, Eva. She was very distraught. Her husband, Jack,
was missing and she had no idea where he was. She is a nurse,
and had been working at the nursing home that day. She had came
home, and Jack wasn't there so she thought that he had run to
Walmart's or somewhere else. Then she noticed that their canoe
was missing. A couple of days earlier, I had went by their house
to see them. No one was home, so I wandered around the yard,
looking at all the beautiful flowers and the great landscaping
Jack had done. My attention was drawn to that canoe that was
sitting on top of the side of the carport.
When Eva called me, I began to pray for Jack, that the Lord
would keep him and protect him. A few minutes after 10 PM,
Jack's Mom, Debbie, called me and told me that they had found
Jack's vehicle by the river, but there was no sight of Jack. We
had received much rain, and the river was full, and the current
was swift. After I heard this, I prayed again, and the Lord gave
me assurance that Jack would be okay.
We went over to the river where Jack's vehicle was found. Many
people were gathered there, including representatives of the
Sheriff's Department and of the Georgia Game and Fish
Commission. They already had a boat, and were getting ready to
go search for my lost son-in-law and his two friends. Eva was
really all to pieces, thinking the worst. Just before the boat
was to be launched, the sheriff received a call on his radio.
Someone reported hearing someone hollering at the next bridge
down. We loaded up, and drove over there (about 10 miles). It
was dark, and we begin to yell for Jack. No answer. It was now
after midnight, so Eva was exhausted and said, "I just want to
go home." Eva, her brother, Joel, my girlfriend, Nancy, and I
started to leave and were stopped. Debbie said, "Jack just
called, they are safe!"
Jack and his two friends were going on a spur of the moment two
hour canoe trip. The current was too swift, the canoe capsized,
the woods were dark and flooded. They wandered around in the
darkness, and then they saw a light. It was a fisherman's cabin.
They went inside, found some matches, rags, and alcohol and made
torches. They begin to walk down the flooded road, and finally
came out of the swamp onto a highway. They were safe!
I really learned some valuable lessons from Jack's episode.
Several weeks before this, Jack and Eva had begun an exercise
program, including swimming. This ordeal was coming up, and
Jack's endurance was tested. Many, many people were concerned
about Jack and his friends. They prayed, and went searching for
them because they were lost. How happy we all were when he was
found safe!
We should be concerned about those who are spiritually lost. We
should be praying that they would find their way out of
darkness, and come to the light.
Matthew 18 verse 12 "How think ye? if a man have an hundred
sheep, and one of them be gone astray, doth he not leave the
ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains, and seeketh that
which is gone astray?"
Irvin L. Rozier