April 10 – “I remember …”

I was on time to the pre-conference breakfast yesterday at the Public Safety conference.  Well, early in fact.  I had to wait for the lady who enlisted me to arrive before I could get a breakfast ticket.  But I have to say, the breakfast was worth the wait.  Convention-style eggs, of course (Hey, I really like those eggs.  And no, they didn’t taste powdered at all.  I’m pretty sure they were actually chicken-produced).  Sausage patties.  Homemade hash browns.  Biscuits and gravy.  And … bacon.  Lots of bacon.  Long, thick strips of all the bacon you could eat.  Yep.  Good breakfast.  I sat at a table with the Houston Police Department honor guard, who would present the colors for the event.  There was also a lady who worked dispatch in Waco there.  She gave me her card and invited me to stop in for a tour next time I was in Waco. 

After breakfast we headed into the ballroom for the opening session.  I prayed after the colors were presented and the pledges and national anthem were all completed.  And after the opening pleasantries (including a welcome from the Galveston mayor pro-tem, who happens to be the council person from our district.  She was so happy to see me.  Said I was the only familiar face she had seen all morning), the guest speaker was introduced.  And from that moment for the next hour the entire ballroom was mesmerized by the story this young lady shared.  Her name was Elizabeth Smart.  Might sound somewhat familiar to you.  Several years ago she made headlines.  As a 14 year old she was kidnapped from her home in Utah and held captive for nine months.  She escaped when she and her captors were walking through downtown Salt Lake City and three different people recognized her and called 9-1-1.  They were surrounded by police and within an afternoon she was reunited with her family.  The young lady was not the most exciting speaker.  She didn’t overly dramatize.  She simply and succinctly shared what she remembered about the experience.  In fact, she said the words, “I remember” probably a hundred times.  I guess that’s what made the story so intriguing.  It was real.  Too real.  Elizabeth is doing well now.  She is married, is a mother, and has written two books.  Her most recent was available at the conference.  In fact she signed hundreds of copies as people came through a line.  I also want to get a copy of her first book.  It’s called My Story, and is a recounting of her harrowing tale. 

Psalms 47:2 says, “How awesome is the Lord Most High, the great King over all the earth!”

Father, would you draw that young lady close to you?  She has a lot of influence now with her books and speaking engagements.  Amen.