Beyond the Fall

Even in our darkest moments, we can turn to the light of Christ and reflect on His faithfulness.  In 2nd Corinthians chapter 12, Paul wrote:
9 And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Just because we belong to Christ and have experienced His salvation, we are not immune from suffering.  Yet, in our suffering, we can find His peace and hope.  He can bring us His strength when we are weak and His comfort when we are distraught.  He enables us to rejoice, even in the paralyzing or perilous circumstances, because we know a God who will work in the midst of those trials and remind us of His love and faithfulness.

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There's a passage in Romans 5 that contains this phrase, in verse 2: "rejoice in hope of the glory of God." There is hope all around us, and when we encounter deep sorrow and even unspeakable tragedy, we can rejoice in God's faithfulness and rely on His presence.  Continuing in Romans 5, we read:

3 And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance;
4 and perseverance, character; and character, hope.
5 Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

The mother of 5-year-old Landen Hoffman was meeting a friend at the mall.  Alleged attacker Emmanuel Aranda was there and he wanted to take someone's life.  The outcome: according to USA Today, Aranda grabbed Landen and threw him off a balcony at the Mall of America in Minneapolis - a distance of 40 feet.

Landen survived the fall, and Aranda is facing murder charges.  The article states that Aranda...

...is charged with attempted premeditated first-degree murder. He said he was angry after being rejected by women at the mall and was "looking for someone to kill," the complaint said.

That criminal complaint, according to the story, "said Aranda had become aggressive after 'coming to the mall for several years and had made efforts to talk to women in the mall, but had been rejected.'"  The article continues: "He said he had come to the mall a day earlier looking to kill someone, but it didn't 'work out.' Aranda said he planned to kill an adult but then changed his mind and grabbed the boy."

Details have emerged, from the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, from pastor Mac Hammond of Living Word Christian Center, where Landen's grandparents attend.  That article says:

In his Easter remarks, Hammond told the congregation that Landen’s mother had “a premonition” as she arrived at the mall to meet a friend that day.

“The Holy Ghost warned her,” Hammond said. “A dread came over her.”

But she didn’t think she should leave, he continued.

“And so she prayed,” he said. “And she called on the ministering angels to hedge them about.”

After the attack, Hammond said, Landen’s mother ran down the stairs to where he lay 40 feet below.

And to the horrified bystanders, “she would say, ‘Just pray,’ ” Hammond continued. “ ‘Don’t say anything, just pray.’ ”

But, the news is tremendously good for young Landen. CBN News reports:

Five-year-old Landen was in critical condition following the incident as he suffered from broken arms and legs, and doctors believed he had sustained severe head trauma.

However, a recent MRI revealed he had no brain damage.

Now, Landen has improved from critical condition to alert and conscious, R. Stephen Tillitt, a family attorney said on Friday.

"All praise, glory, and honor to Jesus! He saved our son's life and is healing him in the most miraculous ways. We are so elated to let you know that our son is now alert and conscious and is no longer in critical condition!" the family said in a statement read by Tillitt.

The next steps are rehab and Landen's release.

Now, I am certainly not going to fault that mother for not leaving the mall; she had encountered a dread, perhaps a check in her spirit, but since it was not specific, she chose not to leave the mall. But, I do think this can remind us that God communicates with His people.  He may be trying to direct us to a divine encounter with a person, or out of danger, or into a situation in which He can be glorified.  The mom here was prepared to respond when her son was seized.  We can be challenged to pay attention to that still, small voice within us and be confident that God is directing our steps.

And, in the light of this unfortunate occurrence, we can remember to acknowledge the presence of the Lord all around us and rejoice when we see Him move.  The family and the church gave glory to God for what they had seen; we can be encouraged to rejoice in the Lord for His faithfulness.

We are also reminded of the presence of sheer evil in our world today.  This was a man who had been severely influenced by evil and was ready to act out upon it.  We do face a spiritual enemy and we have to be attentive to his work, as well.  We can pray in Jesus' name, put on the full armor of God, and rely on God's power.