By Ronald E. George Jr. at the Fayetteville
Baptist Church
Sermon tip of the day: “Try to put yourself in their shoes. Think as they think. Walk
as they walk and talk as they talk. Why
do they do what they do? How do
they feel? How will they hear
this?” Feelings: Anger, hurt, loneliness, pain, no alternative, it is
something as opposed to nothing.
President
Addresses Nation on Space Shuttle Columbia Tragedy
Feb.1, 2003
Remarks by the President on the Loss of Space Shuttle Columbia
The Cabinet Room 2:04 P.M.
EST
THE
PRESIDENT: “My fellow Americans, this day has brought terrible news and
great sadness to our country. At 9:00 a.m. this morning, Mission Control in
Houston lost contact with our Space Shuttle Columbia. A short time later,
debris was seen falling from the skies above Texas. The Columbia is lost;
there are no survivors.
On board was a crew of seven:
Colonel Rick Husband; Lt. Colonel Michael Anderson; Commander Laurel Clark;
Captain David Brown; Commander William McCool; Dr. Kalpana Chawla; and Ilan
Ramon, a Colonel in the Israeli Air Force. These men and women assumed great
risk in the service to all humanity.
In an age when space flight
has come to seem almost routine, it is easy to overlook the dangers of travel
by rocket, and the difficulties of navigating the fierce outer atmosphere of
the Earth. These astronauts knew the dangers, and they faced them willingly,
knowing they had a high and noble purpose in life. Because of their courage
and daring and idealism, we will miss them all the more.
All Americans today are
thinking, as well, of the families of these men and women who have been given
this sudden shock and grief. You're not alone. Our entire nation grieves with
you. And those you loved will always have the respect and gratitude of this
country.
The
cause in which they died will continue. Mankind is led into the darkness
beyond our world by the inspiration of discovery and the longing to
understand. Our journey into space will go on.
In the skies today we
saw destruction and tragedy. Yet farther than we can see there is comfort and
hope. In the words of the prophet Isaiah, "Lift your eyes and look to the
heavens. Who created all these? He who brings out the starry hosts one by one
and calls them each by name. Because of His great power and mighty strength,
not one of them is missing."
The
same Creator who names the stars also knows the names of the seven souls we
mourn today. The crew of the shuttle Columbia did not return safely to Earth;
yet we can pray that all are safely home.
May God bless the
grieving families, and may God continue to bless America.”
Scripture
Text:
Is. 40:21 Have ye not known? Have ye not heard? Hath it not been told
you from the beginning? Have ye not understood from the foundations of the
earth? 22 [It is] he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the
inhabitants thereof [are] as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as
a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in: 23 That bringeth the
princes to nothing; he maketh the judges of the earth as vanity. 24 Yea, they
shall not be planted; yea, they shall not be sown: yea, their stock shall not
take root in the earth: and he shall also blow upon them, and they shall
wither, and the whirlwind shall take them away as stubble. 25 To whom then
will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One. 26 Lift up your
eyes on high, and behold who hath created these [things], that bringeth out
their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his
might, for that [he is] strong in power; not one faileth. 27 Why sayest thou,
O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, My way is hid from the LORD, and my judgment
is passed over from my God? 28 Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard,
[that] the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth,
fainteth not, neither is weary? [there is] no searching of his understanding.
29 He giveth power to the faint; and to [them that have] no might he
increaseth strength. 30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the
young men shall utterly fall: 31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew
[their] strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run,
and not be weary; [and] they shall walk, and not faint.
1.
Have you heard the news?
There
was another shuttle disaster. There
may be a coming war. Terrorism is
on the rise and we are at a level orange alert.
It has happened. There is
much fear of the unknown. What
will happen next? We don’t
know.
2.
Have you not heard the Good News?
There
is someone who knows.
There
is someone who knows you.
There
is someone who knows how you are feeling and He knows what you fear.
There
is someone who knows and CARES. There is God!
3.
Have you not known?
There
is someone who is control.
There
is someone who is above all and is in control.
There
is someone who is God. He won’t
be made into a puppet. He will do
as He chooses when He chooses to. He
is the Lord.
4.
Have you not seen? Who is the Lord?
There is one who created
all of this. His handiwork?
Look
up and realize who is the One who has created all these wonderful things. All the stars are called by name and he makes sure that none
of them go out. There is
someone who is so far above the mightiest of all humanity that the difference
can’t be measured. We
are as a grasshopper compared to Him. He stretched out the heavens and the
stars. This is his tent. He makes
the mighty of the earth to seem like nothing.
He could just blow on the mighty humans and they would die immediately.
Who can we compare Him to or who is his equal?
5.
Have we forgotten? Why do we ask? Is
God is there watching over us? Have
you not seen? Have you not heard?
He is the Creator. He
doesn’t get tired or sick. He
is beyond our understanding. He
doesn’t become who we want Him to be, but He invites us to be who He wants.
Then we can experience His presence and power.
6.
Don’t forget!
V. 29 says that He gives power to the faint
and strengthens the weak. Even the strongest will get weak and fail, but not those who
depend and wait on the Lord. They
will get stronger. They will soar
like an eagle, because He gives them help that they need. He wants to help? He
wants to be your God and your strength.
He
gives strength to the tired and helps and heals the sick.
They will not get tired because he will renew their strength.
7.
Spread your wings as an eagle.
Wait/Depend
on the Lord. Don’t go it on
your on. He will come through.
Trust
Him and His decisions for you. Go
to Him in prayer and wait on His answer.
Spread
your wings and rest on the wind of the Lord, which is his Spirit.
Run
with Him and feel his strength.
Keep
on keeping on and let the Lord give you what you need when you need it.
Call
on Him and decide that you will go where he wants you to go and be who He
wants you to be.
He
will help those that wait on him and don’t try to help themselves.
Those who go ahead will miss the opportunity to be helped by Him.
They
will soar like an eagle. They
will run and not get tired. They
will be able to keep on walking without getting tired.
He will strengthen them…