Heroes and Incoming Cows

A lady was out walking her dog when she noticed a happy old guy sitting on his porch. “Excuse me,” she said. “I just couldn’t help noticing how happy you look. Tell me, what is the secret to your long happy life?”

“Well,” the man responded, “I eat fatty foods, never exercise, smoke three packs of cigarettes a day, and drink about a case of whiskey a week.”

“Wow,” the women said, “and how old are you?”

He counted on his fingers a minute and said, “Twenty-eight.”

Well, one of the secrets to a long and happy life is to focus on what’s pure, lovely and of good report. So here we go:

First, there’s good news for surfers: Each year more people are killed by cows than sharks. Wait. I guess that’s bad news for ranchers.

In other good news, Spencer Stone (Airman First Class) was enjoying a train ride through the French countryside when a man boarded the train armed with a Kalashnikov assault rifle.

Spencer leaped to his feet and took a run at the terrorist, followed closely by his two friends, Alek Skarlatos and Anthony Sadler. The terrorist pointed his Kalashnikov at Spencer and pulled the trigger. The gun clicked, but didn’t fire, and Spencer threw the man to the ground. As Spencer held him in a choke hold, the terrorist pulled a handgun from his jacket and pointed it at Spencer’s head. Miraculously, it too clicked but didn’t fire. “God was with me on that one,” Spencer said later. In a last-ditch effort, the terrorist attacked Spencer with a box cutter before he was overwhelmed by the three young men.

The families of these three heroes said their heroism was directly related to their Christian faith. Pastor Anthony Sadler, who ministers in Sacramento California, told reporters that he believes his son Anthony and friends were used by God to disrupt what could have been an awful tragedy. The young men were presented with one of France’s highest medals, The Legion of Honour.

I don’t understand the ways of God, but I do know that Anthony Sadler and his friends knew the words of Jesus in John 15:13 (NIV): “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

Whether we’re surfing, traveling or eating breakfast, let’s look for ways to put others first. We’re not guaranteed a long life, but we’ll make a little good news along the way.

As for me, I’ll call my rancher son, and warn him to watch out for cows.