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Military PCS to Colorado Springs?
Please visit us when you come to town! We want your family to meet
our family!!
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"Come and See" by Ray Hawk, Jackson, TN
Would he be late? He
remembered what his boss had told him about that. He picked up the
pace. His family was depending upon him. He needed this job. He could not afford
to be late.
As he rounded the comer to his place of employment, he saw that he was not going
to be late, but he actually would be early. A smile came across his face. He
rebuked himself for worrying.
As he was about to enter the doorway, he felt a steady hand grab his shoulder.
He turned to see a man with a burden. It was a soldier with his equipment. The
soldier said something to him. He felt a different kind of fear stick in
his throat. He knew what this man wanted. The soldier stated, "I am pressing you
into the king's service. Carry my load one mile."
He could not believe his ears. Surely this was a joke. Why him? Why not someone
else? There
were plenty of others who could have been called upon. In his culture, if a
soldier wanted a civilian to carry his load for a mile, the citizen was
obligated to do it. No one wanted to. No one enjoyed being subscripted for the
duty. But, once compelled, there was no way out.
He asked if he could tell his employer where he would be for the next thirty
minutes. Surely his employer would understand since this was a matter that he
had no choice in. However, he
quickly learned that the soldier too was in a hurry. He replied in the negative.
There was
nothing else to do but pick up the soldier's equipment and carry it.
As he trudged along under the weight of the compelled burden, he wondered if his
employer |
would fire him because he was late. Surely, since this was something he had no
control over, his boss would understand. Yet, his boss was a hard man to please.
Maybe he would not care what the circumstances were. Maybe he would tell him he
should have been earlier in getting to work, then he would not have run into the
soldier. Such thoughts created a gnawing fear that gripped his heart.
As he walked, he tried to remember what the Teacher had said the day before.
What was it? It suddenly came to him. "If the military demand that you carry
their gear for a mile, carry it two." "Two!" he thought. When the Teacher had
said it, he had not given it too much thought since he had never been pressed
into such service. Now that he had, he again thought, "How can I do two miles
when I don't have time to do one?"
Yet, the Teacher had said two. Two miles. He had also said, "Do not worry." That
was easier said than done. But, the Teacher had said it. He had also stated,
"Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" He wished he could
take this thirty minute trip off and be back there opening the door to go in to
work. But he couldn't. So he started working on his attitude. The kind the
Teacher had talked about.
The soldier began to notice a difference in this citizen. He wasn't grumbling.
He did not have a sour disposition for being compelled to carry a soldier's
load. The soldier was shocked when the man said he would carry the load for
another mile. In that mile the soldier began asking the civilian why he was so
eager to carry his load. That gave the man the opportunity to talk about his
Teacher. By the time they reached the second mile, the soldier asked, "What is
the name of your teacher?" The man replied, "His name is Jesus." The soldier
asked, "Where is this Jesus?" With that, the man said, "Come and See" (Matthew
5:41; 6:27). |
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