Well to say that the last couple of months have been busy is an understatement.  Life has come at us and passed us by in the blink of an eye.  It's hard to believe that we have not been able to update our Column & Commentary section since January.  I feel like I do have a pretty good excuse though, my husband and I adopted our first daughter from China.  And since February we have been busy getting ready for her, going to China to get her, and then getting adjusted to life with a busy 1 year old.  While we celebrate this new life and this new beginning to our family, I do apologize for not keeping this site current. 

This month I have taken an excerpt from our new devotional edition of Beyond the Lights and Sirens.  This edition is about strength and Eric Strait wrote a great article about his experience with RIT and having to find strength.  I decided to also make this piece our Column and Commentary article for May.  You will also find more inspirational writing on strength by Peggy Roche-Landis.

Thank you for your patience and understanding!  And please keep our family in your prayers as we find the strength to chase after our new daughter.

Blessings,

Wendy Norris
President, Firefighter Ministries

Strength- By Eric Strait, Chaplain  

Men in the fire service are often thought of as being big, tough, fearless and strong men.  We train constantly, take care of our bodies (hopefully) and study so that we can handle any situation under any circumstances and any conditions.  One such training would be RIT or RIC training depending on the terminology used by your department.  This training can be intense and very demanding mentally and physically, for good reason.  Anyone who has ever been assigned to these positions and has been activated knows that it is an adrenaline rush like no other while being downright horrifying also. 

     Recently we were doing such training.  I was the team leader and I had two recruits with me.  While preparing our gear I told the guys to relax and not to worry about making mistakes.  Training is the time you want to make them, and no matter how experienced you are there will always be something you missed, could have done better or you may just plain make a mistake.  Little did I know that I would be the one to make the mistake.        We were the back-up RIT crew and were activated when the first RIT crew ran into problems bringing a downed firefighter out of the basement of the house.  We entered the structure to find heavy smoke and zero visibility.  We followed the hose to the stairs and began our decent to the basement to assist the other team.  Keep in mind these are narrow stairs with two charged hose lines on them.  We came to a landing and as I shifted my body to began going down the last few steps my knee rolled off the step and I went crashing to the bottom, rolling and flipping two or three times before I stopped.  I landed on another firefighter who heard me coming and braced himself for the pending impact, not knowing when due to zero visibility.  After crashing into him we both landed on top of the firefighter that we were trying to bring out.  The officer in charge of the scenario immediately terminated the evolution, called for ventilation and medical equipment to be readied for the injuries.  The guy I was on had an injured leg above the ankle, was in great pain and hollering for me to get off him.  The guy under him had both of us on his head and could not breath well.  I could not move.  I had pain in my left elbow, left leg, left ribs and was on my back with my feet still on the steps, I could not move.  We were surrounded by several other firefighters, yet no one could see enough to help those of us who were down.  After a quick prayer to God for the strength to lift and turn myself I was able to get up and actually help bring the other firefighter out of the building, rendering him aide before I looked at my injuries.  No injuries were severe, yet my ribs were hurt and I’ll be nursing them for a few weeks. 

     In the scenario I misjudged the edge of the step.  Although I had a tool and was sounding for it, I still missed it.  A mistake made by a 12 year veteran.  Fortunately it did not cost anybody a life or have critical injuries with it.  Our Christian lives can be the same way.  After being a Christian for a few years, going through some trials and rough times we think we’ve gained the knowledge and strength we need to handle anything so we began to get careless.   Just as God warned Cain to do right because sin is crouching at the door and it desires to have him.  God told Cain he must master it (Gen. 4:7).  It doesn’t matter if you’ve been a Christian five minutes or 30 plus years, sin is always around you and desires you.  Sin is just like the smoke I encountered going into the structure to help rescue the downed firefighter.  I did not master the smoke around me and it got me.  It literally knocked me on my back and hurt me as well as some of those around me, just as sin will do.

     The prophet Jeremiah tells us that the wise man should not boast about his wisdom, the strong man about his strength or the rich man about his riches, but of knowing the Lord instead (Jer. 9:23-24).  Our strength should be found in our God in Heaven, a God who can renew our strength (Is. 40:31).  In that basement in my pain and frustration I did not have the strength I needed to rescue myself until after I prayed to the Lord and asked him for help.  He delivered me in my time of need just like he can for you. 

     In your Christian life do not become foolish in thinking that you have mastered the sin that surrounds us in the world.  “For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength”.  Don’t test your wisdom and strength against God’s, you will lose.  Remember, what is not possible with man is possible with God (Lk. 18:27).  Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name, sing to him praises, let the hearts of those who seek him rejoice.  Look to the Lord and his strength, seek his face always and never forget the wonders he has done.  (Ps. 105: 1-5)