A Good Story

CBN.com - "Jessica Lynch, we are United States soldiers and were here to protect you and take you home," bellowed a member of a United States Special Forces Unit.

"Im an American soldier, too," Pfc. Jessica Lynch replied weakly.

This simple exchange between a team of highly skilled soldiers and a badly wounded Army supply clerk thought to be dead set the tone for perhaps the most heartwarming story to transpire during the first two weeks of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

In fact, the drama that unfolded last week has all the elements necessary to become one of the better stories ever made into a Hollywood movie. But it is the underlying theme of hope and praise that allow Jessica Lynchs harrowing ordeal to ring true in our hearts.

Jessicas story begins in the humble, hardscrabble hamlet of Palestine, West Virginia, population 1,000. Upon graduation from high school in 2001, she joined the Army on the same day as her older brother Greg, as a means to fulfill her lifes ambition to become a school teacher.

The next 21 months are that of your typical enlisted soldier. Eight weeks of basic training followed by a period of specialized training and then a first post assignment: 507^th Maintenance Company, Fort Bliss, Texas.

As the distant rumblings of war became more and more pronounced due to an apparent breakdown between the United States and United Nations, the prospects of an overseas assignment for the 507^th Maintenance Company was becoming more and more clear. Eventually, the rumors became reality: Pfc. Jessica Lynch and company were headed for Kuwait with the possibility of venturing into Iraq should President Bush call for it.

Then on the fateful day of March 23, four days after the official start of the war, the 507^th was attacked after making a wrong turn during some of the earliest fighting in Nasiriyah. Dressed as civilians, Saddam Husseins Fedayeen loyalists ambushed the 507^th. Jessica watched as several members of her unit were killed in the ensuing firefight, including her roommate and good friend Pfc. Lori Piestewa. Five others were captured and became prisoners of war. Despite gunshot wounds, Jessica continued to fight. (Upon her rescue, medical personnel also determined she had sustained two broken legs, a broken arm, a head wound, injured spine, a broken right foot and ankle.) The former "Miss Congeniality" of Wirt County, West Virginia, kept firing her weapon and shot several Iraqi soldiers. She continued to fire until she eventually ran out of ammunition.

According to a recent article in the Washington Post, a U.S. official was quoted as saying, "She was fighting to the death. She did not want to be taken alive."

She was soon captured and taken to an Iraqi hospital where presumably she would be left to die. However, this is when the miracle of Jessicas rescue begins.

Earlier, I mentioned the theme of hope and praise. This was never more evident than in Jessicas hometown of Palestine, 70 miles north of Charleston. As she lay in the bed provided by her brutal captors, a community of family and friends back in West Virginia began to pray fervently for her rescue. Her parents, Greg and Dee, held nightly prayer sessions at their home. Many churches in the area gathered to pray for this young woman who some had labeled as "scrappy" due to her determined personality.

In the midst of her nine days of parental peril, Jessicas mother told the Washington Post of her daughters faith in God. Somewhere in her past, Jessica had written the following words in a memory book, "If I could live my life all over again, I would most likely live it exactly the same. I believe everything happens for a purpose, whether God paralyzes a person or gives them a million dollars."

Hope and praise.

This hope that was flooding a tiny town in West Virginia was also flooding a mans heart half a world away in Iraq at the same time. According to published reports, an Iraqi lawyer known only as Mohammed is credited with being Jessicas saving grace. He had gone to the same hospital where Jessica was suffering to visit his wife who worked there as a nurse.

As he entered the facility that day, Mohammed couldnt help but notice a heightened level of security around the hospital. When he asked a doctor there why there was such an increase he was told that a woman American soldier was there.

Out of blind curiosity, Mohammed went looking for this American woman soldier who was allegedly staying in this hospital. He soon found her but was horrified by what he observed. Looking through the window of Jessicas hospital room, Mohammed saw a badly wounded young woman being beaten by an Iraqi colonel.

He was shocked and chagrined as he witnessed the atrocities being committed on this defenseless woman. Mohammed decided right there on the spot that he must do everything in his power to try and save this young American from her certain demise.

He proceeded to walk six miles to the nearest U.S. Marine checkpoint with his intention being to inform the American soldiers of what he had witnessed. He was instructed by the Marines to return to the hospital and take notes on where Jessica was located in the hospital, how many people were around her, and what the routines of the people were guarding her.

Mohammed not only returned to the hospital to carry out this task but he also provided Jessica a small flicker of hope by speaking to her in english and at one point telling her, "Dont worry."

Satisfied with the information Mohammed had provided them, U.S. special operations forces scurried behind enemy lines under darkened night skies and seized Jessica in a daring rescue. Perhaps you have witnessed their grainy, night-scoped heroics the thousands of times it has been shown on television in recent days. Pfc. Jessica Lynch had been saved!

Meanwhile, word trickled back to rural West Virginia in the form of a phone call to Jessicas parents. First thought to be a cruel April Fools joke a day late, Greg Lynch, Sr. was eventually convinced that his daughter had indeed been saved in miraculous fashion. This undeniable hope that had permeated their community for nine days had officially turned into miraculous praise. All throughout Palestine and the surrounding area hundreds of people gave thanks to a very merciful Lord.

Hope and praise.

It says in

The light that illuminates our personal darkness is hope. Our dreams, desires, expectations, and longings are all defined by a sense of realizing the potential of possibility. No matter what happens to us, we know that our future belongs to God and to God alone. Utmost to this belief is the naturally held provision that He is concerned for our welfare. Simply put, He listens to us when we pray and He answers when we call upon Him. Even more remarkable is the fact that we have a God who not only concerns Himself with the needs and affairs of a nation but also personally cares about each one of us. He cares about me, he cares about Jessica Lynch, and he cares for the long-suffering Iraqi people. All we need to do is seek His face.

From hope comes the need and desire to praise Him. Despite the nature of our circumstances, our spirits and minds can praise God. When we praise Him, it acknowledges Gods divine wisdom and control over our lives. We must never despair, but keep on expecting His help no matter how severe the situation.

The family and friends of Jessica Lynch are strong evidence that where there is prayer there is hope. And from hopes comes praise.

"But I will hope continually, and will praise You yet more and more. My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness and Your salvation all the day, for I do not know their limits."

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Information used in this article from The Transformer Study Bible.

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