Rescue

A 27-year-old Chinese student studying in Japan was rescued twice from Mount Fuji within a span of four days—after he returned to the mountain to retrieve personal belongings left behind during his first rescue.

According to Japanese authorities, the man was first airlifted from Mount Fuji earlier in the week due to climbing difficulties. After the rescue, he realized he had left behind his mobile phone and other possessions on the mountain. Determined to recover them, he returned to Mount Fuji just days later, despite the clear dangers of a second off-season climb.

On his return ascent, he was spotted over 3,000 meters above sea level by another climber, who alerted rescue teams. The man was again brought down the mountain and taken to a hospital, reportedly suffering from symptoms of altitude sickness. Officials later confirmed it was the same individual rescued days earlier.

Mount Fuji is snow-covered for much of the year and officially open to hikers only between early July and early September. The risks of off-season climbing are well known, and local authorities have stressed the dangers repeatedly. The dual rescue has drawn attention not only for its rarity but also for the man’s decision to return so soon. Though he was not charged with any crime, local officials emphasized the seriousness of the situation and lamented the loss of resources required for such rescue operations.

Hopefully this young man will do a better job of learning from his mistakes in the future.

Possible Preaching Angles:

It’s easy to fall into repeating our mistakes, even when we know better. Ignoring wise counsel can lead us into real danger. But never forget the grace of God, which offers the incredible gift of second chances.

As fire threatened people in Jasper National Park, Colleen Knull sprang into action. “I like to be able to help people,” said the 18-year-old. “I like the fact that what I do in my work does good.”

Knull is a volunteer firefighter in North Okanagan in Alberta, Canada. She was working a summer job as part of the kitchen staff at a Jasper lodge when one night an evacuation order was issued for the area. “The smoke was coming up from the mountainside,” said Knull. “It was big.”

Knull quickly spread the word to guests of the lodge and tracked down any other people camping out in the area. In total, she rallied 16 people together for a four-hour hike in treacherous terrain to safety.

Rebecca Tocher, a hiker who was in Knull’s group said, “There was more intense smoke, my eyes were burning, there was ash falling constantly. She was an amazing leader and was just making sure that everyone was working together.”

Knull used her knowledge of the area and tracking skills to navigate in the dark. Knull said:

I had previously ridden a horse up to that lodge on that same trail and throughout the way me and my employer, we had cut logs on the way up," said Knull. "There were 67 logs, so there would be 67 cut logs on the way down…So, I used my tracking skills – following horse tracks, and horse manure.”

“She was just on it and she led it, the whole way,” said David Richmond, another hiker in the group.

“I do it because at the end of the day, I’d want somebody there to help,” said Knull.

During the hike down, the group was able to communicate with search and rescue crews to help with the evacuation. Knull eventually drove all 16 people in her pickup truck out of the evacuation zone. No one was seriously injured.

Knull said the experience reinforced her motivation to become a full-time, professional firefighter.

Possible Preaching Angles:

1) Rescue; Salvation; Savior, Christ only - Christ, our compassionate Savior, personally leads us through the valley of death, just as He promised, 'Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, you are with me' (Psalm 23:4). His prior experience ensures our safe passage. 2) Evangelism, Witnessing - Christians can show others the way to safety in the Lord since they know the way (John 14:6).

According to a French story, a drowned girl's body was recovered from France's Seine River sometime in the late 1800s. Her body, displayed in a Parisian mortuary in an attempt to identify her, captured the imagination of one of the mortuary's pathologists. So, he had a sculptor take a plaster cast of her face. The beautiful, enigmatic mask—named "L'Inconnue de la Seine" ("The unknown woman of the Seine")—was soon for sale among artists and writers who found it a muse for their work. In fact, no fashionable European living room of the late 1800s was complete without a mask of the Inconnue on the wall.

But her image didn't stop there. And this is where the story gets really interesting: In 1955 Asmund Laerdal saved the life of his drowning young son, grabbing the boy's motionless body from the water just in time and clearing his airways.

Laerdal at that time was a successful Norwegian toy manufacturer, specializing in making children's dolls and model cars from the new generation of soft plastics. When he was approached to make a training aid for the newly-invented technique of CPR, his son's brush with death a few years earlier made him very receptive.

He developed a mannequin which simulates an unconscious patient requiring CPR. Remembering the mask on the wall of his grandparents' house many years earlier, he decided that "The unknown woman of the Seine" would become the face of Resusci Anne. She has a pleasant, attractive face, with the hint of a smile playing on her lips. Her eyes are closed but they look as if they might spring open at any moment.

So, if you're one of the 300 million people who's been trained in CPR, you've almost certainly had your lips pressed to the Inconnue's.

Possible Preaching Angle:

How like God's work of redemption this is: to take the very worst things imaginable—like the horror of death—and make something new that would save countless lives. This is what God did for us on the cross, which we remember each Easter and Lord’s Supper (1 Cor. 11:26). The difference between the cross and the “unknown lady” is that our Lord was raised triumphantly from the grave and we serve a risen Lord (1 Cor. 15:1-58).

After losing his dog for 19 days, one Utah man turned heartbreak into action, using cutting-edge drone technology to help others.

Keith Anderson’s pup Oliver went missing in the Unitas last summer. The search felt overwhelming; he described it as “like losing a family member.” Throughout the search, many suggested using a drone with a thermal camera to help locate Oliver. However, Keith found it nearly impossible to find anyone locally who had such equipment. Eventually Oliver was found with the help of a trapper and the community, but the experience left Keith determined to ensure others wouldn’t face the same challenges.

Motivated by his ordeal, Keith invested in a $7,000 drone equipped with thermal detection technology to assist others in finding their missing pets. He explained, “It’s pretty easy to quickly confirm what you’re looking at and the shape and movement of a dog.” Armed with an FAA license, Keith now volunteers his drone services across Utah, helping families locate their lost pets.

Keith said, “It feels really good to help people out with something like this because it’s not easily accessible to everyone.” However, Keith emphasizes that the drone is just one part of the equation. Successfully finding a missing pet often requires a collective effort from the community, combining high-tech solutions with teamwork and perseverance.

Through his dedication, Keith is turning his personal loss into a lifeline for others, proving that technology and compassion can make all the difference in reuniting families with their beloved pets.

Possible Preaching Angle:

So also, God seeks the lost with compassion and diligence. God often redeems our pain and loss by shaping us into instruments of compassion and service, using our suffering to bless those around us.

In August 1914, a British scientist and explorer set out from England with a crew of 28 men, intent on accomplishing a spectacular goal: crossing the whole continent of Antarctica coast to coast on foot. The explorer’s name was Sir Ernest Shackleton, and his ship was called the Endurance. Shackleton and his crew never made it to the continent; instead, the Endurance got stuck in pack ice, and eventually sank. The crew was forced to abandon ship.

What followed is one of the most harrowing survival stories of the twentieth century. They spent months floating on ice flows in the Southern Ocean, then their months on a barren, uninhabited island about 800 miles away from civilization, then Shackleton’s desperate journey across those 800 miles of treacherous sea in a lifeboat to South Georgia Island, and then finally a 36-hour-long trek across the mountains and glaciers of South Georgia to arrive at a whaling port. In all, from the moment the Endurance had gotten stuck in pack ice to Shackleton’s arrival at the whaling port, it had been 492 days. Miraculously, not one of the 28 men lost their life.

Shackleton wrote his book in 1919 not only to record their scientific discoveries and retell their wild adventures of survival, but also to express his profound gratitude and admiration for those involved in his rescue.

Possible Preaching Angle:

Testimony; Witness - What we see in Shackleton’s story is the same thing we see throughout the Bible, and the same thing we feel in our own hearts: rescue stories demand to be shared. When we receive a radical rescue, our hearts demand a response. How can we respond to the rescue we have received from God?

Sixteen-year-old Bronwynn Cruden’s family runs an escape room so she’s well-versed in the art of finding an exit. But last Halloween, her skills were critically important and might have helped save lives.

Cruden was doing homework at the front counter of Twisted Escape Rooms in the Vancouver Mall when she heard gunshots ringing out. Cruden said, “I heard ‘boom, boom.’ I didn’t process the first few shots because it sounded so loud and abrupt. Then it was like one after another after another.” Looking up, Cruden saw panicked families running through the mall.

Her first thought was to help those outside her business, so she unlocked the doors and ushered families inside, including a man holding a crying baby. She guided them to a back door for safety. Then, remembering the group of six people participating in an escape room game, she went back to alert them. “I didn’t know if they heard the shots or thought it was something else,” she explained.

Meanwhile, Cruden’s stepmother Wendy, who was out of town, was alerted to the situation through a motion detection notification on her phone. “When I saw that, I was just shaking,” said Wendy, who immediately called her daughter. “And of course, I’m just trying to keep her calm, too." Wendy instructed Cruden to lock herself in the back bathroom with the family’s two dogs and wait for help to arrive.

Cruden stayed in the bathroom, listening to sirens and police in the hallway, until a friend of her father arrived. She then learned that one person had died and two others had been injured in the shooting.

Recalling the chaotic scene, Cruden said, "I watched hundreds of parents running and picking up kids. It was the most people I’ve ever seen in that mall, and more kids than adults or teenagers. I’m mostly sad for the people, for the kids."

Wendy, reflecting on her stepdaughter's actions that night, said, "She did the right thing. She was very brave, and I felt like I was watching a hero when I saw the video.”

The movie Hacksaw Ridge tells the true story of a young man named Desmond Doss. Doss grew up as a follower of Jesus who had strong beliefs about not killing, even in war. So, he became a medic. He was openly harassed for this decision. He even faced a court martial before all charges were dropped.

During the Battle of Okinawa, Doss’ unit was told they would have to join the fight to secure Medea escarpment, or Hacksaw Ridge. Many lives were lost. Doss, however, did not leave as he continued to hear the cry of injured soldiers. Doss sought out the wounded and carried them to safety. Then he would pray, “Lord, help me to find one more!”

Just after daybreak, and fleeing from the enemy, he made it to safety among the U.S. troops at the bottom. He was muddy, sweaty, bloody, scarred, and exhausted. He could barely stand. But for someone who had been in the thick of rescuing the dying all night from the throes of the enemy, what would you expect? To rescue, you have to be willing to get in the muck and mire.

This is what God does. He doesn’t abandon the cry of the dying. This is what makes the Triune God different than all other gods. Jesus came to seek and save the lost. This meant he had to get in the muck and mire with us and our sin.

During an office hiking retreat in Colorado’s San Isabel National Forest, an unnamed worker was rescued after being abandoned by his colleagues on Mt. Shavano, a 14,230 feet mountain. The incident occurred after a group of 15 hikers split into two teams: one headed to the summit while the other ascended to a saddle area before turning back.

While 14 of the hikers descended safely, the unnamed person continued to the summit, reaching it around 11:30 a.m. However, he became disoriented on his descent. His colleagues, already on their way down, inadvertently collected markers that were left to help guide the descent. This confusion left the man struggling to navigate the steep boulder field on the northeast slopes of the mountain.

Using his cellphone, the hiker pinned his location and sent it to his team, who advised him to return to the summit to find the correct trail. Shortly after receiving this advice, a severe storm with freezing rain and high winds struck, disorienting him further and losing cellphone signal in the process.

When he failed to check in, his colleagues reported him missing at 9 p.m., approximately eight-and-a-half hours after he started his descent. A search was immediately initiated but was hindered by harsh weather conditions that affected both ground searches and aerial drone operations.

The following morning, the missing hiker managed to regain some cellphone service and called 911. Rescue teams, who had been searching through the night, were then able to locate him in a gully near a drainage creek. He was airlifted to a hospital, where he was found to be in stable condition.

The hiker reported falling at least 20 times and expressed his gratitude for being able to call for help despite his dire situation. Rescue officials noted that his recovery was fortunate given the challenging circumstances.

Possible Preaching Angle:

No matter what mistakes we’ve made or how we’ve been mistreated by others, God will never leave us or forsake us. Even when God chooses not to deliver immediately, he will walk with us and enable us to endure our moments of trial.

Keisha House is a nurse practitioner and assistant director of the Substance Use Disorder Center of Excellence at Rush University Medical Center. House spent an afternoon training a bunch of aspiring professionals in the skills of preventing death from opioid overdose. These included recognizing signs of substance abuse and administering doses of Naloxone, the generic name for Narcan, an agent that can reverse the effects of an overdose.

These would be absolutely essential skills for any healthcare professional to learn, but House’s clients that day were not nurses or doctors. Rather, they were a group of barbers.

“You all are our eyes and ears, in the barbershop,” House told her audience at Larry’s Barber College in the Washington Park neighborhood of Chicago. House stressed to them that their relationship with local clientele made them invaluable partners in the ongoing quest to reduce and eventually eliminate drug overdoses within the black community.

House stressed the importance of learning the visual signs of overdose, because they’re not always consistent with the ways that such overdoses are portrayed in media. Symptoms can include unresponsiveness, constricted pupils, a limp body, and breathing that slows or stops. In 2018, studies showed that opioid overdoses happened all over the city, but the most deaths were clustered in the mostly black and brown neighborhoods.

Health improvement advocates say that Rush’s outreach to barbershops and beauty shops was influenced by a 2017 Illinois law requiring hair stylists, barbers, and cosmetologists to receive domestic violence and sexual assault awareness training. “In the beauty shop, barber shop, it’s a safe haven,” House said. “If we increase the knowledge, the training, the awareness … we’re able to promote positive health behaviors among their customers, where they feel safe.”

Laniah Davis was one of the barber students given free Narcan kits after the day’s presentation, and she’s feeling confident.

David said, “Now that we know this information, we’re able to save a life or two. If it was somebody in my family, I would want someone to help them. So, whether I know them or not … I would see myself jumping into action to do whatever it takes.”

Possible Preaching Angle:

Just as these barbers were given authority to administer life-saving medicine, so are we authorized to act swiftly and boldly to rescue our neighbors from danger and to show God’s love in real-life situations.

Mariska Hargitay has been playing the same fictional cop role for over 500 episodes of television, spanning over 25 years. Hargitay plays detective Olivia Benson on NBC’s Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. She’s been doing it so long she can practically do it in her sleep.

So, it came to no one’s surprise last April when a little girl spied Hargitay, filming an episode wearing a realistic looking police badge, and mistook her for an actual law enforcement officer. Given her public persona, it was not surprising that Hargitay halted filming on the episode to make sure the little girl got the help that she needed.

The girl had become separated from her mother in a playground in New York City and witnesses say Hargitay took 20 minutes to find her mother and console them both upon their reunion. When asked about it, Hargitay insisted it didn’t take a whole lot of convincing. She said:

There’s a thing: WWOBD, “What would Olivia Benson do?” The fans would always talk about it, and one day it hit me. I have those moments where I’ve sort of slipped into her. If there’s a crisis, I just take over and lead like that. Being strong and fearless.

Hargitay has good reason to feel secure in her role; a month prior, the show was renewed for a record-setting 26th season, besting the previous record for the longest-running primetime live-action series in American television history.

Possible Preaching Angle:

We become what we practice; when we practice deeds of righteousness, we become more likely to live as righteous people. Being a disciple of Jesus is not just about knowing rightly but doing rightly.

Rodney Holbrook no longer has to clean up his shed—he has a mouse to do that. Holbrook, a wildlife photographer and retired mailman, noticed that things were moving around in his Builth Wells, Wales, shed overnight. He set up a night vision camera and discovered that a mouse was picking up nuts, bolts, corks, and other items and putting them back into their box.

Holbrook dubbed the tiny housekeeper "Welsh Tidy Mouse," and said that "99 times out of 100," the mouse cleans up during the night. Holbrook said the mouse seems to have fun moving the objects. He doesn't even "bother to tidy up now, I leave things out of the box and they put it back in its place by the morning.”

Watch the adorable 1-minute video here.

Possible Preaching Angle:

Throughout the Bible, God uses a variety of animals to help his people in significant ways. The Scripture references are just a few examples of the many ways God used animals to help, guide, and protect those he cares for. Each story offers unique insights into God's character and relationship with his creation.

Britain's so-called "loneliest sheep," which was stuck at the foot of a remote cliff in Scotland for at least two years, has been rescued. Cammy Wilson, who led the rescue mission, said it was a risky one. That's why, despite past attempts by others, the sheep had been stuck for so long.

The sheep was first discovered in 2021, on the shore of the cliff in Brora by kayaker Jillian Turner. Photos show the sheep at the base of the cliff surrounded by steep rock on one side and water on the other.

In October of 2023 Turner said she has spotted the sheep several times since and the sheep hasn't been able to move off her spot on the base of the cliff. Turner said, “It is heart-rending. We honestly thought she might make her way back up that first year.”

Wilson, runs a Facebook page called "The Sheep Game" that chronicles his life as a farmer. After another farmer brought the sheep to his attention, he named the sheep Fiona and continued to give updates about her on Facebook.

Wilson then had an exciting update for followers. He and four others used a winch, a mechanical device that can act like a pulley, to get to Fiona. One person stayed at the top of the cliff, while the others traveled about 820 feet down the cliff to get to her.

In a statement, the Scottish SPCA said the group was notified of the rescue. Scottish SPCA said, "Our Inspector checked over the sheep and found her to be in good bodily condition, although needing sheared. The ownership of the sheep then was handed over to Dalscone Farm, a tourist attraction in Edinburgh with activities for children.

You can view pictures of the sheep and the cliff here.

An official investigation by The Washington Post has revealed a troubling trend of officers committing sexual abuse upon minors in their custody, many of whom were already attempting to report other different incidents of sex abuse.

By analyzing an extensive database of police arrests around the nation, reporters identified instance after instance of officers gaining the trust of minors, preying on them when they’re alone, and threatening them to ensure their silence afterward.

The Post highlighted the story of Officer Rodney Vicknair of the New Orleans Police Department. Officer Vicknair was recently sentenced to 14 years for violating the civil rights of a teenaged girl under his care.

Vicknair’s conduct was terrible, but also predictable. He’d been investigated for allegations of misconduct twelve times in his first twelve years on the job. Months before he assaulted the girl, he made inappropriate comments to her in the presence of another officer, but those comments went unreported. He also made a habit of visiting her alone in her home. After Vicknair’s pattern of inappropriate behavior had been reported to superiors, he remained on duty for another week, during which his assault took place.

The child eventually sued the city for allowing Vicknair to remain on the job. While the child’s attorneys were preparing for the trial, they deposed high level police officials to find out if Vicknair’s case had prompted any procedural changes. The truth, they found out, was disturbingly familiar.

“You don’t know of anything NOPD has done differently,” the attorney asked, “to prevent another Officer Vicknair?” “Correct,” replied the police official.

Experts say that part of the problem is the limited nature of police background checks, which often fail to investigate red flags or allegations of impropriety.

Possible Preaching Angle:

Those who serve in positions of power and influence are held to a higher standard; God will judge them even more harshly if they abuse their power.

When a tornado hit Lamar County, Texas, Dakota Hudson and Lauren Patterson feared they would not survive. Hudson said, “We could feel the house start lifting up around us. We could hear the creaking and breaking.”

When the couple emerged from their bathroom, everything around them was destroyed, including their home, a family member’s house next door, and all their neighbors' homes. Hudson said, “God had his hand over our entire community. Looking at this destruction it’s hard to fathom how anyone could survive it.”

As the couple began checking on neighbors and learned everyone was physically OK, Hudson realized the engagement ring he’d just purchased to surprise Patterson was lost in the debris. He said, “Needle in a haystack doesn’t come close to what we were looking for.”

That is until the Paris Junior College softball team stopped by the property to offer help cleaning up. Once the team heard about the missing ring, they got to work. Outfielder Kate Rainey said, “I basically made my mind up. I was going to find the ring.” Rainey and her teammates searched for hours until she spotted a little miracle buried in the mud.

Though it wasn’t the proposal he had planned, Hudson decided there was no better moment to pop the question. Covered in mud, he dropped to one knee, surrounded by debris and with a team of softball players cheering him on. “We’re safe. We’re here. Everybody’s alright. It’s a miracle the ring was found. What better time to do it?” Hudson said. Patterson said “yes” immediately. “This was the light in a very dark moment. And it is still a dark moment, but this has given us reason to breathe and smile a little.”

The couple stayed in a hotel until they determined their next steps. They hope to rebuild on the same property and say they are extremely grateful for the love and support they’ve received from the community during this challenging time.

During Braylon Edwards’ career playing receiver in college and the NFL, he lived with a heightened sense of spatial awareness and kinetic readiness. You can’t spend years running routes at full speed, maintaining readiness to catch a football in midair while equally skilled and muscular men are ready to assault you with their bodies, and not develop the ability to react in real-time.

But on one Friday morning, Edwards’ skills weren’t just useful for avoiding harm, but also for preventing it from happening to others. When he entered a local YMCA, Edwards witnessed a 20-year-old young man assaulting an elderly gentleman around sixty years his senior.

Edwards said, “I walked into the locker after working out, I heard a noise about four rows behind me.” The dispute, according to Edwards, appeared to be over the playing of music, and he wasn’t initially concerned. But then things escalated, and that’s when he stepped in. “You start to hear some pushing and shoving, and you know what fighting sounds like … once I heard a ‘thud,’ that’s what got me up.”

Edwards quickly subdued the young man and held him securely until authorities arrived on the scene. The victim, unidentified in official accounts, was admitted to a local hospital and reported to be in stable condition.

When confronted with the possibility that this man might have died if he hadn’t intervened, Edwards revealed that the love for his own family propelled him to protect someone else in their later years. “At the end of that day, that’s just what you do … my mom, my grandma, my father … in that moment, these are the people you think about.”

Police Chief Jeff King said in a statement, “As evidenced by the significant injuries inflicted on the victim, it is clear that Mr. Braylon Edwards’ intervention played a pivotal role in saving the victim’s life. This is a horrific incident, but the selfless efforts made by Mr. Edwards embody the best in our society.”

Possible Preaching Angle:

God is glorified when we use our gifts to show love to others in need, especially the weak, the vulnerable, the poor, or the sick—these are the people whom Jesus regularly sought out for rescue and deliverance.

When James Free looked inside the donation bin, he saw something that he normally sees: a pair of shoes. Free was volunteering with Portland Rescue Mission, the organization that helped him to stabilize and get back on his feet after a season of addiction and houseless living. In his role helping to sort donated goods, he’d seen many pairs of shoes come through the bin. But these shoes looked different. They looked special.

It turns out, they were. They were a pair of limited-edition gold-colored Air Jordan IIIs, which were specially designed at the request of film director Spike Lee to celebrate his first televised Oscar win at the Academy Awards in 2019. Somehow, someone at Nike’s global headquarters in nearby Beaverton, got a pair of these rare shoes, and instead of keeping them or selling them, donated them to Portland Rescue Mission.

After Free saw the shoes, he alerted director of staff ministries Erin Holcomwb, who reached out to some local sneakerhead experts who could help authenticate their value. Eventually Holcomb reached out to Nike designer Tinker Hatfield, who donated an original box and several other design artifacts to complete and legitimize the shoes as a collector’s item. In their final more glorified form, Holcomb personally escorted the shoes to New York, where they could be authenticated and auctioned off by the luxury auction firm Sotheby’s.

Holcomb said, “In my seventeen years of working at the mission, this is the first time we’ve ever decided to resell a donation.” She says those Air Jordans are a great metaphor for the work they do at the mission: helping people rediscover themselves as incalculable treasures of humanity, despite having been discarded or overlooked by others.

The shoes eventually sold for more than $50,000, which was donated to the mission to continue their work. Hatfield said, “I’m thrilled the shoes ended up here. It’s a happy ending to a really great project.”

A woman in Sunderland, England nearly leapt to her death from in 2018 from Wearmouth Bridge, very well known as a place where people come to end their lives. She now returns to that site regularly to post messages encouraging others who are having a rough time to get help.

Paige Hunter, now 21, says that when she was a teenager suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, she found herself standing at the edge of the bridge, thinking about ending it all. That’s when a pair of Good Samaritans approached Hunter, telling her “You are worth so much more than this.”

That not only stopped her from jumping, but changed her life. The next day, Hunter wrote those eight words that were told to her on several pieces of paper and posted them all over the bridge where she had her epiphany. That’s where her campaign, Notes of Hope, began.

Since then, Hunter said she’s left over 1,000 laminated, handwritten messages on the Wearmouth Bridge encouraging others struggling with mental health issues to seek help. She’s received lots of feedback and thinks she’s saved dozens of lives through her efforts—and even improved her own. Hunter said, “It’s definitely therapeutic for me to write these messages.”

25-year-old Callum Doggrell said his life was saved by Hunter’s efforts. “I was going through a really rough patch, and I was at a point in my life where I didn’t want to be here anymore,” he said. That was in early 2019. He thought about his one-year-old son and other loved ones and decided to push past his trouble and carry on. He and Hunter are now in contact.

The biggest concern for Dr. Steve Lome before starting the Monterey Bay Half Marathon along the California coast was being able to keep up with his teenage kids beside him. But the cardiologist would soon face a life-or-death situation around mile three of the 13.1 mile race.

Lome said, "Somebody right in front of me collapsed. I saw him go down and it was pretty clear to me that it was not just somebody who tripped and fell or somebody who fainted. It was a very sudden collapse."

The man on the ground was 67-year-old Gregory Gonzales, a Washington state Superior Court judge. Gonzales said he felt fine even in the moments right before. He'd trained for the race and was so at ease that day, his only worry was nabbing a good parking spot. Gonzales said, "I thought to myself, 'Oh my gosh, it's downhill for a little bit, great!' That's all I remember."

Lome says Gonzales hit his head on the pavement when he fell. Lome rushed over and started CPR with the help of a few passersby. Lome said, “The biggest concern is that, having no blood flow to the brain, you can get some permanent brain injury. That's what we want to avoid at all costs.” He estimates they were doing chest compressions for maybe six minutes when Gonzales was defibrillated and taken by ambulance to the hospital.

Once the ambulance left, Lome was a little rattled but decided to continue the race. He had lost about 15 minutes and could make some of it back, even if his kids were farther ahead by now. He got on his cellphone, alternating between running and walking, just to make sure the hospital where Gonzales was headed knew what had taken place at the scene. He says that can make a difference to a patient's care. He eventually made it past the finish line and threw his hands up in the air to celebrate the accomplishment.

Lome and Gonzales are keeping in touch and plan to race together at the same half-marathon next year. Gonzales said, “There's not a day that goes by that I don't have tears of joy. Absolute joy. I'm here with a second chance at this life.”

Possible Preaching Angle:

As believers running the race of life, we are surrounded by people experiencing spiritual life-threatening issues. Do we care enough to stop what we are doing and offer life-giving help from the scriptures to them?

Editor’s Note: In the full-length version of this event, Dr. Lome actually saved two runners who suffered cardiac events. The other happened at the end of the race after Dr. Lome had crossed the finish line.

Traveling from Niagara Falls to Washington D.C., a tour group of 10 South Koreans got stuck driving in a blizzard near Buffalo. Two of the group went to a local house to ask for a shovel to dislodge their vehicle.

It was Christmas Eve when Alex Campagna heard their frantic knocking on his door. Outside was “the worst blizzard I’ve experienced - it was the Darth Vader of storms.” Knowing the folly of trying to carry on, he invited them all inside, putting them up on couches, air mattresses, and sleeping bags.

Eager to repay his kindness, the guests cooked several South Korean meals like stir-fried pork, and dakdori tang, a spicy chicken stew. As it turns out Campagna and his wife really like Korean food and actually happened to have some of the more extravagant ingredients on hand.

The Times reports they waited out the blizzard and stayed Friday and Saturday. They swapped stories, and even enjoyed some American football matches on Christmas Eve. On Christmas day drivers came to pick up the tour group and took them to New York for some impromptu flights.

“We have enjoyed this so much,” said Choi Yoseob, a member of the group who described the experience as unforgettable and a “unique blessing.”

A post-traumatic bond between strangers has led to an enduring friendship across generations. At the start of the day on August 28th, 2022, Travis Connor and Ray Shields had only one thing in common: they both wore matching ponytail hairstyles. But by the end, they would be bonded by another unlikely coincidence: both were on the premises of a Safeway grocery store in east Bend when a gunman opened fire, killing two and injuring others.

When the shots rang out. 62-year-old Shields had been using crutches, but tried to grab them and run when his hip gave out and he crumpled, collapsing to the ground. 31-year-old Connor had been glued to his phone, but quickly spied Shields, put him over his shoulder, and ran to get them both out of harm’s way.

That would’ve been the end of their time together, but according to Connor, “You don’t throw somebody over your shoulder and then say bye.” The two exchanged phone numbers and made plans to reconnect. Just three days later, they received grief counseling together at Pilot Butte Middle School, which led to a series of walks and hiking trips where they shared details of their lives with each other. That year they spent Thanksgiving together, and then Christmas. Shields said, “We quite literally fell into each other’s lives.” Connor replied, “It’s a special circumstance that the normal guy has never experienced.”

After his father passed in 2016, Connor, moved to Bend to seek a new start and escape the rut in which he felt stuck. But his chance encounter with Shields helped to catalyze positive change in his life. Connor said, “When I pulled Ray from the gunfire, I felt like the person I wanted to be was there.” Shields, who has no children and for whom most of his family had moved away, felt his friendship with Connor blossom into something like kinship. “In a way, I do see Travis as my son.”

Possible Preaching Angle:

Nothing bonds people together like going through difficult circumstances together. When we demonstrate loyalty, support, and encouragement, we are modeling the character of God, who promised never to leave or forsake us.