SHOULDER TO SHOULDER #40 ---- 10/19/98
Posted by: root <root@...>
With Fellow Soldiers As We Fight the Good Fight
TITLE: "May We Be A Shining Light"
Dear Friend:
I greet you again this week in the awesome and incredible Name of the
Lord Jesus Christ:
Lord ---- because He is above all else, all things are under His feet,
and He rules and reigns with all power and in absolute authority.
Jesus ---- because He and He alone is our Salvation Who has saved us both
from ourselves and our sins.
Christ ---- because He is indeed our Anointed One, anointed before the
foundations of the world were laid, and anointed to preach the Gospel to
the poor, to proclaim release to the captives, to recover sight to the
blind, to set free those who are downtrodden, and to proclaim the
favorable year of the Lord ---- the Year of Jubilee ---- the time of
restoration and recovery.
IT IS GOOD / NOT GOOD TO BE HOME:
As I sit here before my computer at this writing, I am glad to be home
---- but sad to be home. (Will the tensions of opposites ever cease?)
By my presence here you already know that the planned conference in Banja
Luka, Republik Srpska, did not take place. In last week's letter I asked
your prayer for that situation, that we would know what we should do ----
cancel the meeting or go ahead and travel into Serb held territory and do
the conference.
Well ---- the decision was taken out of our hands and made for us. Last
Tuesday night, because of the situation in Kosovo and the potential for
reprisal toward Americans, the missionaries decided they would heed the
warning from the State Department and follow the example of the U.S.
Consul there, and leave the area ---- even though, apart from one
isolated flag burning episode by an individual, there was no evidence of
danger or uprising against western countries.
So, we immediately set in motion the process of changing our travel
plans, purely for financial and convenience reasons. Just hours after we
had changed our flight plans so we could leave Sarajevo Wednesday
afternoon and return to Zagreb, the missionaries called back indicating
they were staying.
By then it was too late to go back to plan A. Besides, it had been an
extremely emotional time for them, and the last thing they probably
needed was a time of intensive study that would require significant
concentration.
So ---- as all other doors also seemed to close, we found ourselves in
Zagreb's Hotel Centre Wednesday night, on EC 10 train all day Thursday
traveling through the Austrian Alps, enjoying a delicious dinner at
Wiener Wol restaurant near the train station in Munich that night, and
then flying back to Kansas City via Washington and Chicago on Friday.
While we are very sorry we were unable to meet, fellowship with, and
minister to the wonderful missionaries and other believers in Banja Luka,
we are totally comfortable with the outcome of the developments. And, in
all probability, we will find this week that it is a blessing in
disguise, because it gives us some extra days to recover from the journey
and re-tool for our first of five consecutive meetings between now and
Thanksgiving.
So ---- THANKS FOR PRAYING!
And, thanks for so many personal notes of encouragement and prayer that
were embodied in the 189 e-mail messages we found waiting for us upon our
return. Those, along with a number that reached us in Croatia and
Bosnia, lifted our spirits and reminded us of one of God's choicest
blessings ---- friendship and fellowship among believers.
GOBBLEDEGOOK:
In reading through my own copies of the past three newsletters, I noted
that there were often some added characters. These were caused as a
result of using various computers and transferring the material from
other countries, sometimes through a series of steps in order to get them
to their posting destination. Now that we're home, hopefully that won't
be a problem.
I still have lots of gobbledegook in my brain today. Memories of the
trip, weariness from travel, continued adjustment to another time change,
shifting my mind to begin thinking of the continuous series of
conferences and speaking engagements over the next five weeks ---- all
these things have effectively robbed my brain of either a sense of
continuity or a hope of inspired writing today.
So ---- my friend, this may be just the meat and potatoes menu today ----
with no salt. I hope you'll forgive me for not having very much
emotional "punch" to my letter today.
GOBBLEDEGOOK PROTECTOR:
Incidentally, let me introduce you to my mailing list server ----
@welovegod.org. Several years ago God put into the heart of Glen Stewart
the ministry of providing free e-mail mailing list and web site service
to Christian ministries. Today Glen, using high tech automated programs,
services more than 60 such mailing lists. These lists are secure and
well protected from list "theft" and from Spamming.
If you are in need of such a service for a regular (daily, weekly,
monthly) mailing list server, I commend Glen and his ministry to you.
You can reach him in Flint, MI by writing him at
<[email protected]>. He'll give you the details.
I just learned today that Glen also has a "clean humor" mail out he
manages. You might want to check it out, if you're into laughing. I
know I am going to. Here's his note about it:
>Clean-Hewmor is a mailing list that will usually receive one message
>per day, moderated to assure quality. The message will often be worth
>a good laugh, or at least be inspiring (-;
>
>To subscribe, send ANY message to [email protected]
AIRLINE EPISODES:
Most people do run into some interesting airline episodes when they
travel. Our trip was no exception. Friday, as we were preparing to
leave Munich, everyone was on board and tucked in, waiting for the take
off. Suddenly the Chief Purser came on the intercom and announced that
we must deboard the plane with all carry on items so the plane can be
searched (for drugs or explosives, I presume).
After an hour and one-half delay we took off, fully expecting to miss our
Washington D.C. connection to Chicago. However, we made it with minutes
to spare, and, after another Chicago to Kansas City delay, arrived in
Kansas City around Midnight.
Jeff Floyd, our partner in ministry on this last trip, received the
following passed on by a mutual friend, Rod Fockler. I thought you
might find them amusing. Here's what he sent:
"Occasionally, airline attendants make an effort to make the
'in-flight safety lecture' and their other announcements a bit
more entertaining. Here are some real examples that have been
heard or reported:
+ "Your seat cushions can be used for flotation, and in the event
of an emergency water landing, please take them with our
compliments."
+ Once on a Southwest flight, the pilot said, "We've reached our
cruising altitude now, and I'm turning off the seat belt sign.
I'm switching to autopilot, too, so I can come back there and
visit with all of you for the rest of the flight.
"Should the cabin lose pressure, oxygen masks will drop from the
overhead area. Please place the bag over your own mouth and nose
before assisting children or adults acting like children.
"As you exit the plane, please make sure to gather all of your
belongings. Anything left behind will be distributed evenly
among the flight attendants. Please do not leave children or
spouses.
"Last one off the plane must clean it."
+ And from the pilot during his welcome message: "We are pleased to
have some of the best flight attendants in the
industry...Unfortunately none of them are on this flight...!
+ Heard on Southwest Airlines just after a very hard landing in
Salt Lake City: The flight attendant came on the intercom and
said, "That was quite a bump and I know what ya'll are thinking.
I'm here to tell you it wasn't the airline's fault, it wasn't the
pilot's fault, it wasn't the flight attendants' fault.....it was
the asphalt!"
+ Overheard on an American Airlines flight into Amarillo, Texas, on
a particularly windy and bumpy day. During the final approach
the Captain was really having to fight it. After an extremely
hard landing, the Flight Attendant came on the PA and announced,
"Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to Amarillo. Please remain in
your seats with your seat belts fastened while the Captain taxis
what's left of our airplane to the gate!"
+ Another flight Attendant's comment on a less than perfect
landing: "We ask you to please remain seated as Captain Kangaroo
bounces us to the terminal."
+ An airline pilot wrote that on this particular flight he had
hammered his ship into the runway really hard. The airline had a
policy which required the first officer to stand at the door
while the passengers exited, smile, and give them a "Thanks for
flying XYZ airline." He said that in light of his bad landing,
he had a hard time looking the passengers in the eye, thinking
that someone would have a smart comment. Finally everyone had
gotten off except for this little old lady walking with a cane.
She said, "Sonny, mind if I ask you a question?" "Why no Ma'am,"
said the pilot, "what is it?" The little old lady said, "Did we
land or were we shot down?"
+ After a real crusher of a landing in Phoenix, the Flight
Attendant came on with, "Ladies and Gentlemen, please remain in
your seats until Captain Crash and the Crew have brought the
aircraft to a screeching halt up against the gate. And, once the
tire smoke has cleared and the warning bells are silenced, we'll
open the door and you can pick your way through the wreckage to
the terminal.
+ Part of a Flight Attendant's arrival announcement: "We'd like to
thank you folks for flying with us today. And, the next time you
get the insane urge to go blasting through the skies in a
pressurized metal tube, we hope you'll think of us here at
USAirways."
All this reminds me of some episodes we had several years ago when doing
a series of conferences in the states of Washington and Oregon.
The first hint that it was going to be an interesting trip was when,
following a five hour delay in Minneapolis, the Captain came on and
identified himself (you Monday Night Football fans will understand this)
as John Madden. Shortly afterward, the senior flight attendant offered a
choice of water polo or aqua aerobics on the lower level and later
suggested that everyone on the Left (remember, we're heading from
Minneapolis to Seattle) of the plane should look out the window and see
the Northern Lights.
A week or two later, flying in a "pea shooter special" from Seattle, WA
to Eugene, OR, our lady captain came on the intercom and identified
herself as Mary Martin. I turned to Jo Ann and said, "didn't she play
Peter Pan?"
Oh, well ---- you had to be there.
One final airline joke, which surfaced not long after the Northwest
Airlines pilots were grounded for drinking on the job.
The cockpit crew had enjoyed an unusually fun time on the flight, and
were lining up for their final approach into the airport.
The plane tilted, wobbled, and pitched as the inebriated twosome
approached the runway.
After the plane hit with a jolting thud and bounced once, the Captain
promptly locked his brakes and reversed the engines full throttle,
slinging passengers around like rag dolls and casting billows of blue
smoke from the tires into the air.
The plane lurched to a halt, the crew cut back on the throttle, and the
Captain leaned back in his seat.
"Man!" he said: "I mus' say, that is abs'lutely the shortes' runw'y I'v
ev'r landed on!", to which the First Officer replied,
"Yeah' but jus' look how wide id iz!"
SARAJEVO REPORT:
Last week I shared something about the "Restoring the Nations" conference
and also the conditions in Sarajevo. Re-reading the letter moments ago,
I find it totally inadequate.
Today, three things are vividly imaged in my mind, as I remember the last
three days of our time there.
1. Forgotten Refugees: After preaching in a church that morning, Jo Ann
and I joined Sasha, a beautiful Serbian young woman who was one of our
translators, on a trip into the mountains south of the city to hand out
food and clothing to some nearly 600 Serb and Muslim refugees in two
camps situated at the downhill ski center of the 1984 Winter Olympics.
The little bungalows and the giant hotels all housed these forgotten
people ---- forgotten by all except Ann Carter from Kansas City ---- and
Tim ---- and Bill Steele and the International Mission Board ---- and a
bunch of SFOR men and women from fifteen countries.
Ten months ago Ann, who had worked for SFOR as a deputy supply
procurement officer, learned of these people without homes. She put
together a plan, located some food, and found three or four SFOR enlisted
men to go with her and take food up the winding mountain roads to these
two camps.
Nobody else was doing much of anything ---- not even the Serb Republic in
whose territory the camps are located.
When they first began making those trips, the children refused to come
near the SFOR personnel or take the candy they were offering ---- the
children had been taught these uniformed people were the enemy from the
Devil.
Then, Tim, a volunteer missionary with the International Mission Board
learned of the project, and joined the team, bring with him large
quantities of food and clothing purchased by the IMB and donated to the
project. Today the IMB is one of the major donors each month to this
project.
2. People in the Trenches: The project grew. Today more than 60 SFOR
troops volunteer their time on their days off and journey every third
Sunday afternoon with a truck and jeep convoy up the mountains to bring a
small sense of recognition, love, and hope to a "community" of forgotten
people.
I will never forget some of the people we met ---- the U.S. Army colonel
down on his knees with the children, pulling hands full of candy out of
those baggy pockets and giving it to the children ---- the tall lanky
Frenchman who openly identified himself as a believer in Jesus Christ
---- the three MP's from Ireland who quietly stood guard and enjoyed the
dry humor regarding the Americans ---- the moustached Turk with his red
beret perched on top of his bushy haired head ---- the black Lt. Colonel
who prayed heaven down on the project before we began handing out the
food (stationed in Panama, he and his wife want to be missionaries ---- I
think he already is, and the government is footing the bill!).
Then the thought hit me ---- "I am proud, and I am grateful!"
PROUD AND GRATEFUL:
1) Proud to be an American ---- Watching the men and women of the
United States and the other represented countries, I could honestly say
that, in spite of the tarnished presidency, the political malpractice of
Washington, the moral decadence of a nation in unrestrained free fall
into ever increasing sin, and the purposeless drifting our nation is
ignoring, I am still very proud to be an American.
And, I am grateful.
2) Grateful to be Free ---- One of the greatest blessings God has
ever given the human race is that of being free from tyranny, oppression,
and bondage. As I watched the men and women of SFOR, I knew something
most people don't know ---- there is more to SFOR than meets the eye.
They are not there just to enforce peace ---- they are there to give
freedom an opportunity, and to offer hope to an otherwise hopeless people
living in hopeless conditions.
The Lord reminded me again of just how special the gift of being free
really is.
That was Sunday.
3. Then there was the scene from the mountain.
SCENE FROM THE MOUNTAIN:
Monday was a day of laundry and an afternoon of sight seeing. Duane was
our tour guide. Up to this point we had seen the buildings and the
damage, but Duane showed us something else ---- he showed us the people.
True, we drove the same streets, passed some of the same places we had
been a dozen times already ---- but Monday was different. Duane helped
it be different. An American with the IMB living here for a little more
than a year, you could tell he had found the pulse and touched the heart
of the city. The way he talked and described it made that clear.
We saw the site where King Ferdinand was assassinated, kicking off the
First World War. We saw the original Muslim section of the city with its
narrow, winding, cobblestone streets and city gates still standing. We
saw the Turkish quarters with all the incredible shops filled with
merchandize made on the spot. We tasted the fresh roasted chicken and
the fresh baked bread.
But ---- the most important thing we saw of the city wasn't seen in the
city, but away from it ---- above it ---- from the top of a high mountain
---- one of the same mountains from which the Yugoslav National Army had
lobbed artillery shells, mortar rounds, and machine gun bullets for
nearly three years.
It was the strangest feeling ---- to not only have lived a week in a
house located precisely on the front line and nothing but a shell a few
months earlier, but to also have stood on grass, rock, and dirt
previously occupied by an army fully bent on destroying an entire city
---- No, an entire nation!.
I wondered if the guys who stood there jerking the firing pins or
squeezing the triggers ever saw with their own eyes the destruction they
created. After all, it was three, four, six, even ten miles to the
target their shells took out.
It gets very impersonal when you stay at a distance. You don't have to
deal with hearing the screams, the moans, and the suffering. The war is
very mechanical ---- just sounds of grinding machinery, shells clanging
to the rocky ground, orders being barked over head phones and bull horns.
You don't have to deal with seeing the rotting bodies, the destroyed
businesses, the blood filled gutters. All you see is the smoke billowing
from the muzzle of your howitzer, the mortar erupting from your launcher,
the puff of distant dust as the wall of a high rise disintegrates before
the power of the shell you launched.
To some extent the scene, as others have, reminded me of the
insensitivity that can also creep into the life of a church. It all
becomes so distant ---- so non descript ---- so impersonal. You no
longer see people. All you see is structures ---- systems ---- sounds
---- targets, if you please ---- but not people. Statistics, but not
people. Activities, but not people. Casualties, but not people.
RAYS ON THE CITY:
But ---- that's not what really caught my eye. It's not what really
captured my heart.
The night before, as we met with about 20 IMB missionaries for their
weekly Sunday worship time, my colleague Jeff Floyd had shared a picture
God had imaged in his mind concerning Sarajevo. The gray-shadowed
skyline of the city began to fade, and, in the foreground, the earth
began to move and vegetation began to grow with new life.
Monday morning, Darcy, one of our hostesses, shared something our other
hostess, Debbie, had dreamed that Sunday night ---- the earth began to
boil in front of the ministry center where they work, and life began to
spring up.
So ---- when I saw Monday afternoon the scene from the mountain, I wanted
to shout ---- I wanted to soar above the city ---- I wanted to swoop down
between the buildings singing at the top of my voice ---- I wanted to
yell out, "Sarajevo! Your day is coming! God is going to show up!
There is a new day for you!"
What was it I saw?
It was not a vision, an imagery, or a dream. It was the real thing.
As the five of us stood there on that mountain side alongside a rock wall
more than 800 years old, the scene was absolutely breath taking. I know
already that my description will be totally inadequate.
The city of Sarajevo is surrounded on all sides by mountains. This day
was mostly cloudy, and a misty haze settled over most of the city. It
was like looking into a bowl of chunky soup with rising steam hiding
first one object and then another.
Suddenly, as if on command from a master choreographer, the clouds seemed
to break apart ever so slightly, and rays of sunlight once hidden, forced
themselves through the cracks.
Once they had gained access, the rays refused to be shut off ---- they
seemed to push their ways through the clouds, burning the holes bigger
and bigger.
And, everywhere they broke through, they streaked earthward with the
speed of light until they collided with sky scrapers, splashed onto the
hillsides, and bathed battered houses with the light and the warmth of a
God of unbroken promises.
Like roving spotlights, they swept along from target to target, dancing
off the edges of tall buildings, tenderly brushing across the tops of
trees and grassy hill sides.
It was more ---- much more ---- than the light from the sun.
It was the Light of the Son!
It was God ---- speaking. Not with an audible voice heard with the human
ear, but the voice of God speaking ---- speaking with soundless thunder
---- the sound of ---- the sound ---- of Light!
"I . . . Am . . . Here!"
"Here . . . I . . . Am!"
"I . . . . AM!"
MAY WE BE A SHINING LIGHT:
As I stood in awed silence, again unable to articulate my feelings and
thoughts to Jo Ann, I was reminded of the words of "The Song For The
Nations" written a few years ago by Chris Christensen ---- and then the
song, "Shine, Jesus, Shine!" by Graham Kendrick.
I wanted to stand on top of that old stone wall and sing at the top of my
voice:
"Lord, the light of Your love is shining,
In the midst of the darkness ---- shining!
Jesus, Light of the world, shine upon us!
Set us free by the truth You now bring us!
Shine on me; shine on me!
Shine, Jesus Shine!
Fill this land with the Father's glory;
Blaze, Spirit, Blaze!
Set our hearts on fire.
Flow, river, flow;
flood the nations with grace and mercy!
Send forth Your Word, Lord ----
And let there be light!"
And then sing . . .
"May we be a shining light to the nations,
A shining light to the peoples of the earth;
'Till the whole world sees the glory of Your Name,
May Your pure light shine through us!
"May we bring a word of hope to the nations,
A word of life to the peoples of the earth;
'Till the whole world knows there's salvation through Your Name,
May Your mercy flow through us!
"May we be a healing balm to the nations,
A healing balm to the peoples of the earth;
'Till the whole world knows the power of Your Name,
May Your healing flow through us!
"May we sing a song of joy to the nations,
A song of praise to the peoples of the earth;
'Till the whole world rings with the praises of Your Name,
May Your song be sung through us!
"May Your kingdom come to the nations,
Your will be done in the peoples of the earth;
'Till the whole world knows that Jesus Christ is Lord,
May your kingdom come on earth!"
DO YOU SEE SARAJEVO?
My friend, do you see Sarajevo?
Not the one in Bosnia ---- but the one where you live.
If you're having a hard time focusing in on your Sarajevo, let me ask you
to do what I've done recently.
First, go to the front line ---- look around ---- see the destruction and
devastation ---- hear the cries ---- view the carcasses ---- study the
still hidden mine fields with their yellow warning ribbons, and watch the
children playing on their edges ---- walk around in the rubble and see if
you can detect a once-occupied dwelling place now vacated ---- see if you
can see the weed covered grave sites of past casualties ---- examine the
"rosettes" of past mortar explosions ---- gaze at the gaping holes in the
walls of families now destroyed ---- let the dust in the air sift through
your fingers and the smell of gun powder sting your nostrils.
While you're there, though ---- watch the guy sacrificing life and limb
to locate the mines ---- view Darcy and Debbie feeding soup to the hungry
and the Bread of Life to the starving ---- follow Tim to the masses of
homeless and hopeless refugees and stand by his side as he offers food
for the body, love for the lonely, and hope for the hopeless ---- take a
good look at the Special Forces people determined to stop the war and
give peace a chance ---- watch the missionaries as they tirelessly
minister compassion and offer the message of deliverance.
Then, my friend, ---- go to the mountain.
Thanks, Duane, for taking us to the mountain. I pray I have done the
same for someone today.
In Christ's Bond,
Bob Tolliver -- (Rom 1:11-12)
Life Unlimited Ministries
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Hang in there! I'm with you!
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E-Mail: [email protected]
Ph: 417-275-4854
Fax: 417-275-4855