Today we remember a terrorist attack ten years ago, on U.S. soil, which culminated in the death of 2,996 persons. Though the sights and sounds and emotions are still vivid in our memory, these are not so different from the memories of countless generations before us.
Eighty years ago this week, a baby girl was born in the Philippines. It was only two days later that Japan invaded Manchuria, China (marking the start of World War II to many). By the time this little girl was ten, Germany was trying to overtake the world and Japan had not only attacked the U.S. at Pearl Harbor but had also overtaken her beloved homeland – The Philippine Islands.
We know this girl as Nanay Lorenza Ofong, mother and grandmother to the Rosales family — the little lady in our church whose lips are always filled with “praise for God’s faithfulness.” Nanay has an unshakeable confidence in God because she has seen His faithfulness through the storms, even when her whole world was in turmoil. Though she has lived through fearful times, she knows God’s supernatural protection and intervention in her life.
We are wise to learn from her. When we put our trust in the Lord Jesus Christ it opens the door to discovering who God really is and what He’s like. Then — no memory of the past or fear for the future will be able to hinder us. No matter how fearful the times may be, our lips will only be filled with praise for God’s faithfulness!
–Beth Jones