Lynn Jones: God helps us in the time of need

By Lynn Jones

My wife Danielle and I were living in Burkeville, Texas where I was pastor of one of our first churches. One summer she got an opportunity to serve one week as camp director for girls at East Texas Baptist Encampment nearby. She asked me to serve as camp pastor, and we also had a missionary from Africa who served with us that week.

In the middle of the week, one night after we had gone to bed, I got a phone call from my older brother telling me that my father had died. The camp manager assured us that they would take care of all the responsibilities at the camp, so we left in the middle of the night to go home to Louisiana to be with my family. My father’s death was the first time for my brothers and me to lose a member of our immediate family, and it was a season of great sorrow for all of us. We had his funeral two days later, spent a few more days with my family, and then went home.

The day after Danielle and I came home, there was a knock at the door. We were surprised and moved to see the missionary who had served with us at camp. She was carrying a small sack in her hand, and we invited her in. She said that she was so sorry to learn about the death of my dad, and that all the girls had been upset to learn about his death as well. But, she said, “We all prayed for you and continue to do so. I wanted to come and extend my condolences to you and tell you about the girls’ prayers.” She added, “I also wanted to bring you two gifts.” She then reached into the sack she had brought and pulled out the gifts. They were two long, slender cow horns that had been carved into the shape of birds with their beaks lifted straight up into the air. Then she said, “In the country in Africa where I serve, these are the birds that come to us in the dry season.” She gave us a quick hug and then left.

I have now had those two cow-horn birds for 54 years. I keep them on a shelf in my office, and every time I look at them, I remember the loss and the grief that my family experienced. But I also remember the missionary’s visit and the words she spoke to me when she gave me the gifts. “In the country in Africa where I serve, these are the birds that come to us in the dry season.”  God knows all about our grief and pain, and He comes to help us just when we need Him most. He comes and walks with us in every dry season of life.

Lynn Jones is a retired pastor who lives in Oxford. He does supply preaching for churches in his area and often serves as an interim pastor. Jones is also an author, has written two books and writes a weekly newspaper column. He may be contacted at: kljones45@yahoo.com.