Arizona firefighters rescue 25 people, including infant, during flooding in Bear Canyon

The Ladder

Usually Arizona is associated with dry, desert regions. But recent monsoon
rains have caused flashfloods in the area creating some emergency
situations.

Twenty-five people including three children and an infant were found
stranded at what was normally a low water crossing in Bear Canyon outside
Tucson. Authorities determined that a ladder rescue was the best option, so
Ladder 7 of the Tucson Fire Department was called out. The ladder was
lowered across the flooded creek and served as a bridge for crew members to
escort the stranded people to safety. *

Our sins leave us stranded with no hope and in deadly peril (Romans 6:23).
Our sins separate us from God (Isaiah 59:1-2) and we are lost unless someone
comes to our rescue.

God loves us and doesn't want anyone to perish (2 Peter 3:9). So God sent
His one and only Son to rescue us (John 3:16). In order to save us and to
give us eternal life, Jesus had to give His life for our sins (1 Peter
2:24).

Jesus is the Bridge to bring us to God and to all of the spiritual blessings
that He wants to give to us.

"For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous,
to bring you to God" (1 Peter 3:18 NIV).

Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the
Father except through Me" (John 14:6).

To access the Bridge to God, we must place our faith and trust in Jesus
(Acts 16:30-31), turn from sin in repentance (Acts 17:30-31), confess Jesus
before men (Romans 10:9-10), and be baptized (immersed) into Christ for the
forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38). Then as we continue to walk in the light
of His Word, the blood that Jesus shed in His death continues to cleanse us
from all sin (1 John 1:7-9).

The Son of God who descended from heaven became the Bridge to bring us to
God. You can be saved and have eternal life in heaven if you will access
the Bridge through your trusting obedience.

-- David A. Sargent

* Information gleaned from "Arizona firefighters rescue 25 people, including
infant, during flooding in Bear Canyon" by Stephen Sorace, www.foxnews.com.

David A. Sargent, Minister

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Tai Chi is a series of gentle physical exercises and stretches

Unique

First impressions of this man would likely be that he was a kind man with a
friendly smile - and he was. He greeted everyone as they entered the doors
of the Creekwood Church of Christ building, offering a church bulletin, a
warm welcome, and a smile. He was known to be a rather quiet and
mild-mannered man, but there was so much more to Al Warsh. He was very
unique. Here are a few examples of his uniqueness:

Al was a skydiver in his younger years. He jumped out of an airplane and
parachuted to the ground some 1,250 times. No, he wasn't in the military;
he did it for fun.

Al practiced Tai Chi. "Tai Chi is a series of gentle physical exercises and
stretches. Each posture flows into the next without pause, ensuring that
your body is in constant motion. Tai Chi is sometimes described as
meditation in motion because it promotes serenity through gentle movements -
connecting the mind and body" (from www.mayoclinic.org). Al taught Tai Chi
to others so that they could receive the physical and mental benefits of the
exercises.

Al was a grade checker. "A grade checker works in the construction
industry, typically on roadways, to set grade stakes meant to guide
equipment operators on sloping highways and embankments. In this career, you
set these grade stakes using hand tools, measuring instruments, and using
specified ratios" (from www.ziprecruiter.com). A friend and fellow
engineer told Al's wife, Eunice, that Al was the best grade checker in
California.

Al was an alcoholic. By the grace of God and with the help of Alcoholics
Anonymous, he was sober for over 40 of the last years of his life. Al knew
what it was to battle the addiction and sought to help others in their
struggles. He worked as a volunteer with AA, beginning in the late 1980s.
He mentored many alcoholics. He ran the AA office in Mobile for many years.

Al was a Christian. He recognized that despite the mistakes of his past
that God loved him and desired to save him through the gift of His Son
Jesus. Al obeyed the Gospel and embraced the love and grace that are found
in Christ. He sought to follow in the steps of Jesus by serving God as he
served others. Countless lives have been blessed because of Al's kind and
compassionate care.

Like Al, every person is unique. You are unique. And each of us is
uniquely loved by God. God doesn't want anyone to perish (2 Peter 3:9) but
desires all to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4). Our sins condemn us, but God loves
us and has made provision for our salvation through the death of His Son on
the cross (Romans 5:8).

God will save and give eternal life to those who place their faith and trust
in Jesus (Acts 16:30-31), turn from their sins in repentance (Acts
17:30-31), confess Jesus before men (Romans 10:9-10), and are baptized
(immersed) into Christ for the forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38). He will
continue to cleanse from sin those who continue to walk in the light of His
Word (1 John 1:7-9).

Each of us is unique and uniquely loved by God. Like Al Warsh, may each of
us accept God's love, grace, and salvation by submitting our lives to Him
and living out our days in service to others.

-- David A. Sargent

* In Loving Memory of Alan James Warsh (June 14, 1947 - August 4, 2022).
Until we meet again.

David A. Sargent, Minister