Dear Friends of First,

Some years ago, this time of the year, on a Monday afternoon, I was meeting with a couple in my office when I receive a phone call asking if I could come to the city courthouse to help console parents who were gathered there due to a hostage situation at the High School. I thought to myself, as I drove to the courthouse, “Am I equipped for this? What will I say to the families who are gathered waiting to

find out if their child will be alright?” When I arrived, I was told that one of the students in the classroom was holding the other students at gun point. I found myself sitting in a room filled with parents and family-friends as they waited for updated information regarding their daughters or sons. People’s emotions were for the most part intact. You can imagine how difficult those hours were for the families. What words of comfort could I offer during this time of helplessness?

Two of the student hostages were from our church and recently were confirmed. I thought about their faith in God. I began to ask myself, “Did I teach them enough about prayer? Do they know that God is always with them?” I prayed that God would comfort them and protect them. I felt helpless as their pastor, they too must have felt helpless. God help us all!

I remembered a wooden plaque with a saying on it that hung on the wall of my

pastor’s office back when I was a youth director. It read the “Main Thing.” I thought about that plaque and its message..the “main thing.” What was the main thing that day in a time of need and helplessness? What could the message be? Could the “main thing” message be that God loves you and promises to never leave you? God’s love

is found in the sign of the cross! Could that be the the “main thing?” Keep it simple. God is with those students, and their teacher in that classroom. God is with the families waiting in the courthouse. Trust in God, that God will deliver. Is that the message God would offer during this very difficult time?

Two hours later, the news came to the parents that the children would soon be

delivered to the courthouse to be reunited with their families. “They are free!” one

mother cried. Another mom said, “See, we have received an early Christmas gift.” Another mom said, “We’ve been given our children back.” She was right, the children were taken away from their families for almost six hours and now given back. What a gift! One family was not so fortunate. Their son was the one who held the class hostage. He took his life that day, it would take many, many years for that class to recover from that horrific event.

As we enter the season of thanksgiving and gift-giving, keep it simple and remember the “main thing.” God loves you. Jesus dyed on the cross for you and promises to be with you for eternity. Know that you are blessed, be clear and know that you have been saved by grace through faith in Jesus. Keep it simple, and tell your kids that you love them.

May peace be upon you,
Pastor Jim