A DANGEROUS WAY TO EARN A LIVING

Most of us would say that about mining, probably.  Yet for years we have heard of accidents in mine shafts which have threatened many lives and taken the lives of countless others.  The current tragedy of the trapped miners in Utah, some 3000 feet underground is the most recent revelation of that dangerous way to earn a living.  They were seeking to mine coal, one of our principal fuels for heating and for powering electrical plants.  As rescue attempts appear to have failed and are now being called off, it is tempting to be critical of anyone who would want to be a miner.  Before we make that assertion, however, we should think again.

Mining isn't the only dangerous occupation.  Soldiering is probably the most dangerous of all.  Today there is no draft; therefore, in the all-volunteer service, the people who are there are there because they choose to be.  That is certainly their choice.  Just as mining is the choice of miners.  And other dangerous ways to make a living--professional football comes to mine--would certainly be  considered as well.  Rather than be critical of people who have chosen these and other dangerous ways to make a living, we should remember them in prayer.

Can we afford to forget that back in the mists of time people "earned" or hacked out a living for themselves only at great physical cost.  There was an often hostile environment, whether animals, native people, or weather conditions, or a combination of factors, which made the making of a living dangerous at best.  As we have grown more sophisticated and domesticated, some of these dangers aren't as likely to occur as they would have before, but that does not mean that danger does not still exist.

So our prayers and our concern are lifted up today for the families of the trapped miners, for other miners, and for all those whose work daily places them in danger.  Let's ask the Lord to bless them with safety to return to their families and loved ones every night.