a tribute to the miners

this reminded me of the capsule felix that brought them up

i have been watching the rescue of the chilean miners with baited breath and sincere prayers for their safety.  i have been moved by this situation when we first heard about it on tv in august.  many times i have been prompted to pray for them, and i was touched to see how the families moved to the middle of the desert and set up camp to be near to those they loved.  in fact i said to bob once that i wish i could go there.   it has been more then just another 'news story' for me.  i wonder if the reason i feel so connected and compassionate towards them is because we are living amongst the spanish culture here.

when i saw this i thought of the chile flag

i love the spanish culture and i can see so many similarities to the way they are handling things: the obvious friendship and comradry, the commitment of the families to camp out, their positive attitudes, their desire to NOT be inundated by the media, their obvious faith in the Lord, the letters written back and forth, the fact that they HUG the president!!  wow i don't know but i don't think a north american would go and hug their prime minister or president upon being rescued.   nor do i think our prime minister would stay up ALL night and the next day.  over and over i see that 'people matter!'     it is typically a trademark of the south american culture and one that i have grown to love and appreciate more and more as we live here.

when the second man was rescued i was moved to tears as i watched the reunion with his wife.. so touching!!  i love  that he  gave a bag of rocks from down below to the president and other workers.  such a giving attitude!!  and then he began to lead them in a chant CHILE!  the whole scene was so full of JOY!  in fact i never grew tired throughout the day of watching those reunions and hearing that chant.

i have been watching the coverage for most of the day in between doing laundry and washing the floors.  i am moved to see their public displays of faith:  dropping to their knees in prayer, giving God thanks and admitting that they were sustained by Him during the whole time.  it is interesting to note that when they were first discovered they sent word up to send down toothpaste and bibles!! haha.. love that!!  :-)



Sepulveda, the second miner extracted from the mine, has advice for those who take undue risks in their lives.
"I think I have learned a lot of wonderful lessons about taking the good path in life," he said. "For those of you able to call your wives or your husbands, do so."
During the time he was trapped inside the mine, Sepulveda said, he saw both good and evil.
"I was with God, and I was with the devil. They fought, and God won," he said. Sepulveda said he grabbed God's hand and never doubted that he would be rescued.  (taken from the CNN website)

i don't know if you noticed the tshirts that the miners were wearing the day of their rescue.  Jose Henriquez's brother got the tshirts printed and this was printed on the back:

To Him be the glory and honor. Because in his hands are the depths of the earth, and the heights of the mountains are His.”

taken from Psalm 95:4

on the sleeve bore the name JESUS~

as i walked throughout the yard i thought of seeing light for the first time.. wow! what a blessing to the miners!

this rescue is so remarkable truly because HE was down their in the depths with those men.  He sustained them, taught them, transformed many of them, and when they surfaced it was that joy that we saw in their eyes

we can learn from them can't we?  i don't know what you are facing.  but i know it is nothing compared to be trapped underground for 68 days.  but either way, i think we can learn from them and grab God's hand.

so hold on, grab His hand, keep believing, keep praying, don't lose heart... 

we can learn from the miners of Chile.

my heart and my flesh may fail but GOD is the strength of my heart and my portion forever

.

we need to continue to pray for them as they adjust to their new life.  one of the youngest miners wrote this to his family while underground:  "I'm fine. I'm still not nervous. I believe when I see everyone, nerves are going to attack me. But for now I'm happy and calm. I've always been in this spirit."   I believe what he said is very true that the 'nerves' and the reality of what they went through will hit them in the days and months ahead.  one news reporter late last night said that many of the men hadn't slept yet due to nerve, excitement and adrenalin.   please pray for them that they will not experience post traumatic stress.  pray that they will be able to rest and sleep.  that health will be restored.  that relationships will continue to be nourished and strengthened. pray that they will have wisdom to know how to deal with the "world" that wants to make them all stars.