Rescue
We Provide, and Need, Deliverance
Introduction
A common theme in our favorite films and books is the hero who rescues someone in distress. This theme calls to us because humans were meant to live in the “we-ness” of mutual deliverance. Thank you for joining me in this issue of the “R-series” in which I ponder rescue and how we provide, and need, deliverance.
Note about the image: This is a dog we used to have, trapped in a prisoner costume. We didn’t make her wear it for long before we rescued her!
A Minute of Motivation
Starving
Everyone is starving for appreciation from others. It feels wonderful to get a word of thanks from someone, to feel appreciated and special. We all want to feel important, and being appreciated makes us feel just that.
When we work hard to do a good job or to do something kind, we feel even better when someone notices and thanks us. A word of acknowledgement is like a happy energy pill we can give to each other. When we receive appreciation, we feel enthused and energized to continue working hard.
People at all status levels and in every walk of life need to know that their contributions to this life made a difference. Today, look for the kind behavior of others and jobs well done, and make it a point to say a warm “thank you” to those responsible.
Note. Originally published in 1992. Re-published here because of the rescue provided by appreciation for someone who feels undervalued, invisible, or weary.
Enjoy Life More
Rescue or be Rescued
Life is fraught with many traps and cages. Some are manifested in physical form, such as an ailment or disability which limits mobility. Others are situational, such as a job that demands more than it delivers, leaving the worker drained and discouraged. And there are emotional prisons, places of the heart filled with darkness and despair.
Each of us has times when we need to be rescued. It could be as simple as needing help carrying a heavy load or as complex as needing someone’s perspective to sort through a psychological dilemma. At other times we are the one who provides rescue to another, opening a door for someone with arms full of parcels or pausing to listen and care when life’s invisible burdens are too much to bear. Joy can be found in being rescued and in being the one who does the rescuing.
No matter the nature or direction of the rescue, there is sacrifice and surrender involved. The one being rescued has to surrender to the rescuing, acknowledging the need for help. The one doing the rescuing has to sacrifice something to provide rescue to another, providing time, attention, and resources for someone else.
I recently watched “Thirteen Lives” a movie about the true story of 12 boys and their soccer coach who became trapped in a flooded cave in Thailand. All 13 people were rescued by cave divers who faced life-threatening difficulty reaching them, followed by unspeakable struggle to bring them out alive. One diver, well aware of the danger, died during the rescue efforts. I don’t want to spoil the details of the story, but, if you want to enjoy life more, and dig a deeper understanding of the sacrifices of rescue, I recommend you watch this movie.
Are you in need of rescue? Surrender to someone to rescue you.
Is there someone near you in need of rescue? Sacrifice yourself to be the rescuer.
Enjoy life more through providing or receiving deliverance. Life is too hard alone.
Faith Corner
“He will rescue them.” (see Psalm 72: 14)
I recently had a disturbing dream where I was trapped and couldn’t find my way out. The setting for the dream was a common theme for me, a large hotel conference center. The exit signs weren’t helpful, pointing in opposite directions. At one point I got caught up in the flow of people heading into a large auditorium. After escaping from that, I asked a hotel employee for help finding the way out. I woke up from the dream while being led to an exit.
As I pondered the dream during my morning quiet time I asked the Lord for a Psalm about “rescue.” The response was “72.” There, in verses 12-14, the compassion of the Lord is described:
“For He will save the needy who cry, the poor with no helper. He will have pity on the weak and needy and save the souls of the needy ones. He will rescue them from oppression and violence, for precious is their blood in His sight.”
The word for “rescue” is also translated “redeemed” which makes sense in the context of the rest of the passage. Humans are needy, weak, and poor, oppressed in a world of sin and violence. Deep in our spirits we comprehend a perfect world, a Garden of Eden in which we do not currently live. Our trapped souls cry out for rescue, desperately longing for the exit.
I told a friend about my dream who noted that hotels are temporary places. People only live in hotels for limited periods of time, then they leave and go back home.
Ah, there it is! This life and its struggles is like a hotel, a temporary place we long to leave so we can go home. The Lord hears our cries, has pity on us, and rescues us. Like the Thai kids trapped in the cave, we had to be rescued through the sacrifice of Jesus, who gave His life in the process. Also, like the rescue of those kids, we remain trapped in the cave, with our rescuer bringing supplies to us. Finally, when the path is ready, rescue from the cave is complete. Similarly, when our temporary time is finished, our full rescue will be realized.
And we will get to leave this hotel and go back home.
Dear Lord, life here is really hard sometimes. There are situations that feel like traps, there are dark emotions that seem unending, and there are battles for which no victory is in sight. I cry out to You for help. Save me! Help me to know You have already provided my rescue and are preparing my way home. Amen.
Poetry Pause
Awaiting Rescue
Trapped underground
Without food,
Oxygen depleting,
The thirteen preserved hope
By digging into the ceiling.
Their futile efforts
Brought no food,
No additional air,
The thirteen kept busy
While waiting for rescue.
Finally, divers appeared
Without rescue
Or resources,
The thirteen were found
But remained in their trap.
Divers brought resources
But no escape,
Only more waiting.
Rescue would be treacherous
And some might not survive.
The trapped surrendered
Became lifeless,
Submerged.
Then thirteen were rescued
And released from their trap.
By Cindy MacGregor, September 7, 2023
Note. I wrote this poem about the rescue from the cave in Thailand.
Old Mom to Young Mom
Teaching Compassion
A future special education teacher in one of my college classes asked how he could address the stigma his children with special needs might experience at school. Several other students, currently teaching special education, offered suggestions of things they do with the children in their special education classes. The most meaningful ideas were ones that provided ways for the other children in the school to interact with, and learn to appreciate and respect, the children with special needs.
In the university setting in which I work, I hear a lot of rhetoric about diversity and inclusion. My typical response is to suggest those words are in the wrong order. We should seek “inclusion of diversity” instead, striving to integrate ourselves with those who are different. Having special needs is one of many variations of the human condition. Prior to mainstreaming, parents of children with special needs were encouraged to place their children in institutions where professionals would provide the care needed. In modern schools, these children are integrated into the classroom experiences of other children, to the greatest extent possible, ranging from “full inclusion” to the “self-contained classroom.”
This complicated and challenging arrangement is certainly not easier than separation into institutions, but I believe it is better. Not only do the children with special needs have opportunities to interact with children in a regular setting, but the children who are “normal” can learn compassion for those who are different than them. I’ve seen this done very well at the middle school where my oldest daughter teaches choir. One of the most beautiful memories I have of this school is from a musical where a boy with a developmental disability was one of the performers. Never was there a more enthusiastic curtain call! And my daughter told me he was heard backstage exclaiming, “This is the best day of my life!”
As an old mom to young parents, I encourage you to give your children opportunities to learn compassion for those who have different levels of ability and intellect. You, and they, might be surprised at the joy they’ll find in including those who are “different.”
Dear Dr. Mac
Dear Amy, Jan, and Dave:
Thank you for your messages in response to “Rock Stars.” I enjoyed hearing about the musical stalactites in Luray Caverns and reminiscing about pet rocks, a strange peer contagion from my adolescent years. I also loved the lyrics of an old hymn, brought to mind when thinking about the sound of gravitational waves in the universe. “My Father’s World,” a poem by M. D. Babcock, published after his death in 1901, has this first stanza:
This is my Father’s world, and to my listening ears, all nature sings and round me rings the music of the spheres. This is my Father’s world; I rest me in the thought of rocks and trees, of skies and seas; His hand the wonders wrought.
Your comments bring me joy! Thanks for sharing!
Cindy
To all my readers:
You can find all my previous posts at ARCHIVE
The first 64 posts are organized in Reflective Adventures: Volume One
You can share your thoughts with me by leaving a comment (see box below) or you can email me at: Dear Dr. Mac, I love to hear from you!