Post by Rhonda on May 7, 2009 1:58:31 GMT -5
The Soldier in Need
A few years ago, upon entering a chat room on the web,
a message popped up on my screen:
"Anyone want to chat with a soldier in Iraq?"
My fingers leapt to the keyboard.
"Sure!" We began a friendship that night.
We contacted each other often.
We exchanged photos.
We kept each other company through our
respective New Year's Eves.
At one point, during one of our
many conversations, his end was cut short.
For three long days I tried to contact him.
When we finally connected,
he explained that his camp had been bombed.
Several people were injured but he was ok.
There had been no warning except for the "thump"
he had heard not far from his tent.
It was a type of explosive that landed quietly
and detonated with no warning,
but as he was in his tent chatting with me, he had
heard the bomb land. I'm not familiar with the various types
of bombs, so I hope I've described this correctly.
A couple of months later, he sent me a friendship ring.
It's called a "puzzle ring" and although it can be seen in
North America, he explained to me it's funny origin:
Apparently men in the east would buy their wives these rings,
with each one having its own solution.
Only the husbands would know how to solve the puzzle.
We had a few laughs, and I wore the ring with pride.
Well, the time came for him to return to his wife and family,
and we just stopped chatting.
It wasn't until late November 2007, almost three years later,
that I came across that ring there in my jewelry box.
I put it on, said "Hi James" and I asked God,
"Why didn't he keep in touch, God?
Was he worried his wife would think we were more
than friends? Obviously we weren't.
What happened?"
The strangest thing happened at that moment. I heard a voice
from somewhere in my head, and not my voice either, which
really spooked me, say,
"Because he only needed you then."
I thought for a moment,
"Yes, that's it! God always has a need for us!
We always have a purpose!
You will always be needed by someone somewhere,
but you won't always know where or when.
God will always need us for something, somewhere, sometime.
I now wear that ring, and when I find myself asking God,
"What's my purpose in life? Why am I here?"
I look at that ring and remember: God needs me,
He just doesn't always let me know where or when.
Thank you James of Washington, D.C.
I hope you and your family are well.
God Bless.
~Barbara Tessier, Canada~
I love this message ~ so true!
A few years ago, upon entering a chat room on the web,
a message popped up on my screen:
"Anyone want to chat with a soldier in Iraq?"
My fingers leapt to the keyboard.
"Sure!" We began a friendship that night.
We contacted each other often.
We exchanged photos.
We kept each other company through our
respective New Year's Eves.
At one point, during one of our
many conversations, his end was cut short.
For three long days I tried to contact him.
When we finally connected,
he explained that his camp had been bombed.
Several people were injured but he was ok.
There had been no warning except for the "thump"
he had heard not far from his tent.
It was a type of explosive that landed quietly
and detonated with no warning,
but as he was in his tent chatting with me, he had
heard the bomb land. I'm not familiar with the various types
of bombs, so I hope I've described this correctly.
A couple of months later, he sent me a friendship ring.
It's called a "puzzle ring" and although it can be seen in
North America, he explained to me it's funny origin:
Apparently men in the east would buy their wives these rings,
with each one having its own solution.
Only the husbands would know how to solve the puzzle.
We had a few laughs, and I wore the ring with pride.
Well, the time came for him to return to his wife and family,
and we just stopped chatting.
It wasn't until late November 2007, almost three years later,
that I came across that ring there in my jewelry box.
I put it on, said "Hi James" and I asked God,
"Why didn't he keep in touch, God?
Was he worried his wife would think we were more
than friends? Obviously we weren't.
What happened?"
The strangest thing happened at that moment. I heard a voice
from somewhere in my head, and not my voice either, which
really spooked me, say,
"Because he only needed you then."
I thought for a moment,
"Yes, that's it! God always has a need for us!
We always have a purpose!
You will always be needed by someone somewhere,
but you won't always know where or when.
God will always need us for something, somewhere, sometime.
I now wear that ring, and when I find myself asking God,
"What's my purpose in life? Why am I here?"
I look at that ring and remember: God needs me,
He just doesn't always let me know where or when.
Thank you James of Washington, D.C.
I hope you and your family are well.
God Bless.
~Barbara Tessier, Canada~
I love this message ~ so true!