A Tale of Two Writers

 "I am the Vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me, you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned." John 15: 5, 6

    Two writers, each with a story to tell. 

    One was a cancer survivor, blindsided by a diagnosis of Stage III esophageal cancer. In shock, he groped his way through the tangle of treatments knowing that if it weren't for his family, he would not have even bothered. Though he'd not thought of himself as a man of faith, he grabbed a bottle of holy water, a gift from his mother, and made a sign of the cross with it after his treatment, "to seek protection." 

    During recovery, he made a bench which he placed in the woods, forming a natural sanctuary. Beside the bench, he fashioned a box wherein lay a notebook and pen encouraging visitors to this idyllic site to jot their thoughts. One wrote, "I asked the universe to cheer my low spirits," Another: "Have faith in yourself. We all have greatness inside of us." 

    The second author wrote of the travesty that has been delivered at the hands of a power monger against the people of Ukraine and Russia, crumbling lives as bombs obliterate buildings. She relayed the true accounts, which have been pouring in from missionaries in the affected area to her church, detailing relief supplies being gathered, the responses from surrounding nations and news of the emergency field hospital, set up in Poland by Samaritan's Purse. These chilling words from a fleeing refugee conveyed the horror: "Our world has broken. We have lost hope." 

    The following, taken from the author's report, is what real faith looks like - faith that is connected to the Power Source: "We cannot allow evil to rob us of our hope. We can listen to reports and commentators all day long, but hope comes from listening to the Creator and Savior of the world, Jesus Christ." (emphasis mine) Scripture, drawn from the book of Daniel, then aptly directed the glory to God, exalting Him as the One who sets up kings and deposes them. Prior to her conclusion with a quote from Joshua 1:9, she went on to say:

"What is going on around us could lead us to despair, and if we did not know who is in control,

we could go down that path. But there is a path that is prepared for us. 

It is lighted by the Light of the World. 

There have always been evil men in power, but no one gets away with defying God,

and those in power today, who have put so many in peril,

will fail and fall just as all those in the past."

    Which of the two writers offered truth to their readers?

"There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves,...lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God - having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people." 2 Timothy 3: 2-5

Sources:

"The Bench at Mabel's Bluff" by Mark J. Speckhart, published by Guideposts Magazine

"Ukraine...Pray, Care and Prepare" by Barbara Hamilton, published by Gazette Newspapers, Inc.