I recently started to read another one of Randy Alcorn’s books. Much like Heaven, If God is Good, is structured similarly with many short chapters similar to a reference book. The material is fairly heavy, so Alcorn laces the chapters with compelling stories to illustrate his points. In this chapter, he’s discussing natural disasters and how they bring out the best in people:
In 1988, an Armenian earthquake killed forty-five thousand. In the chaos, one man made his way to his son’s school, only to find nothing but rubble. Other parents stumbled around dazed and weeping, calling out their children’s names. But this father ran to the back corner of the building where his son’s classroom once was, and began digging.
To everyone else, it seemed hopeless. How could his son have survived? But this father had promised he would always be there for his boy, so he heaved rocks and dug, calling for his son by name: “Armand!”
Well-meaning parents and bystanders tried to pull him out of the rubble. “It’s too late!” “They’re dead!” “There’s nothing you can do!” The fire chief tried to pull him away saying, “Fires and explosions are happening everywhere. You’re in danger. Go home!” Finally, the police came and said, “You’re in shock. You’re endangering others. Go home. We’ll handle it!”
But the man continued to dig, hour after hour – eight hours, then twelve, twenty-four, thirty-six hours. Finally, in the thirty-eighth hour of digging – a day and a half after everyone told him to give up hope – he called his son’s name again, pulled back a big rock, and heard his son’s voice.
“Armand!” the father screamed. From under the rocks came the words, “Dad? I told them! I told the other kids that if you were still alive, you’d save me!”
The father helped his son and thirteen other children climb out of the rubble. When the building had collapsed, the children survived in a tentlike pocket. The father lovingly carried his son home to his mother. When the townspeople praised Armand’s father for saving the children, he simply explained, “I promised my son, ‘No matter what, I’ll be there for you!”
Randy Alcorn, If God Is Good: Faith in the Midst of Suffering and Evil
(Multnomah, Colorado Springs, CO: 2009), 89-90. * Disclaimer - Since creating this blog, I have always added a hyperlink on Amazon for you to read a full description of the books I've excerpted. Initially, I tried adding an image as well so that you could see the book, but it wasn't appearing on the emails, so I removed it. They have made many improvements to blogger, so I am testing it out once again. I created my Amazon Associates account primarily for my link on my website, but if you click on the image or hyperlink it acts as a portal through my account. Thus, a small percentage of anything you purchase once on Amazon will be attributed to my account.
