Not One Stone Will Be Left
Stories
Lectionary Tales For The Pulpit
Series III, Cycle C
Life is fragile; life is powerful. Life can be long; life can be short-lived. Life is certainly meant to be lived to the fullest. For the Christian, it means we can use every opportunity given to us to share the good news.
When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for these things must take place first ... there will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and plagues ... great signs from heaven....
Jan is a devout Christian. She attends a Baptist church in Atlanta, Georgia. Her church offers Sunday morning adult Bible school, Sunday school and has many ministries: men's, women's, and children's ministries. It has a prayer ministry, college student ministry, single adult and senior adult ministries, a missions ministry, prayer ministry, and music ministry. It is a busy church with much to offer.
Jan and her husband, Bobby, and their five children were in Turkey, visiting Bobby's parents. The country was hit with a powerful earthquake on August 17, 1999. It killed more than 18,000 people in the Yalova, Izmit, Golcuk, and Adapazari areas of Turkey. Four of Jan and Bobby's five children were killed in that earthquake, as well as Bobby's father. Jeffrey (6), Jennifer (5), David (2), and Katie (7 months) were part of those over 18,000 who were among the earthquake fatalities. Jan and one daughter, Natalie, who is 3 years old, and her mother-in-law survived the earthquake. On November 12, another earthquake in the nearby area around Bolu and Duzce killed another 800 people and left thousands homeless -- some for the second time.
Life is fragile; life is powerful. Life can be long; life can be short-lived. Life is certainly meant to be lived to the fullest.
This will give you an opportunity to testify ... I will give you words and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to withstand or contradict.
Cassie was a seventeen-year-old junior at her high school in Colorado. A beautiful girl with a bright smile, Cassie was a dedicated Christian active in the youth group at West Bowles Community Church. She liked to study in the library during her lunch hour. She was a good writer and loved poetry.
On April 20, 1999, a fellow student pointed a gun at her face and asked her if she believed in God. She said, "Yes." With that, the student shot and killed Cassie.
Cassie had the courage -- even in the face of death -- to testify to her schoolmate. Her life was short. Her life ended tragically, yet even in death she witnessed to more than 2,500 people who attended her funeral. "This is a graduation ceremony for Cassie," said the Reverend George Kirsten, Cassie's pastor. He had performed the marriage for Cassie's parents nineteen years earlier. "Cassie went to a martyr's death, and we're going to celebrate that because she's in the martyr's hall of fame." Two days before she died, Cassie had a part in a church video where teens spoke of their faith. "I just try not to contradict myself, to get rid of all the hypocrisy and just live for Christ," she said.
Her life is celebrated in the form of scholarships that support Denver-area church youth groups. If you would like information on this scholarship, please write to: The Cassie Bernall Foundation, P.O. Box 261066 Highlands Ranch, Colorado 80163-1066.
When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for these things must take place first ... there will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and plagues ... great signs from heaven....
Jan is a devout Christian. She attends a Baptist church in Atlanta, Georgia. Her church offers Sunday morning adult Bible school, Sunday school and has many ministries: men's, women's, and children's ministries. It has a prayer ministry, college student ministry, single adult and senior adult ministries, a missions ministry, prayer ministry, and music ministry. It is a busy church with much to offer.
Jan and her husband, Bobby, and their five children were in Turkey, visiting Bobby's parents. The country was hit with a powerful earthquake on August 17, 1999. It killed more than 18,000 people in the Yalova, Izmit, Golcuk, and Adapazari areas of Turkey. Four of Jan and Bobby's five children were killed in that earthquake, as well as Bobby's father. Jeffrey (6), Jennifer (5), David (2), and Katie (7 months) were part of those over 18,000 who were among the earthquake fatalities. Jan and one daughter, Natalie, who is 3 years old, and her mother-in-law survived the earthquake. On November 12, another earthquake in the nearby area around Bolu and Duzce killed another 800 people and left thousands homeless -- some for the second time.
Life is fragile; life is powerful. Life can be long; life can be short-lived. Life is certainly meant to be lived to the fullest.
This will give you an opportunity to testify ... I will give you words and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to withstand or contradict.
Cassie was a seventeen-year-old junior at her high school in Colorado. A beautiful girl with a bright smile, Cassie was a dedicated Christian active in the youth group at West Bowles Community Church. She liked to study in the library during her lunch hour. She was a good writer and loved poetry.
On April 20, 1999, a fellow student pointed a gun at her face and asked her if she believed in God. She said, "Yes." With that, the student shot and killed Cassie.
Cassie had the courage -- even in the face of death -- to testify to her schoolmate. Her life was short. Her life ended tragically, yet even in death she witnessed to more than 2,500 people who attended her funeral. "This is a graduation ceremony for Cassie," said the Reverend George Kirsten, Cassie's pastor. He had performed the marriage for Cassie's parents nineteen years earlier. "Cassie went to a martyr's death, and we're going to celebrate that because she's in the martyr's hall of fame." Two days before she died, Cassie had a part in a church video where teens spoke of their faith. "I just try not to contradict myself, to get rid of all the hypocrisy and just live for Christ," she said.
Her life is celebrated in the form of scholarships that support Denver-area church youth groups. If you would like information on this scholarship, please write to: The Cassie Bernall Foundation, P.O. Box 261066 Highlands Ranch, Colorado 80163-1066.
