One day can make a big difference. On Thursday the air pollution was so bad the Air Quality Index (AQI) in Beijing had gone off the index. Though I work in a building with filtered air, it was an unwelcome distraction. I regretted not bringing my mask for the short walk between the Embassy and my apartment and was concerned about breathing air that is considered worse than Hazardous. I also felt bad for the many people that don’t have or choose to wear protective masks and the Chinese soldiers that are not allowed to wear them. Fortunately, the winds returned on Friday and blew away the pollution and the hazards along with it.
There were other days that had a more significant impact on my life: the day I enlisted in the Air Force, the day I got married, and the days my daughter and grandchildren were born. Each of these major events happened in a day and they continue to affect my life. Thankfully, they were good events.
On September 10, 2001, we (in the US) saw Islamic terrorism as something that happened overseas. We felt safe with vast oceans and airspace between us and those primitive attackers. Passengers flew wherever they wanted in the US, without a second thought about terrorists. After all, we could destroy cities with pinpoint accuracy or devastate a country’s economy and make them regret harming us. On September 11 a handful of terrorists with crude weapons and minimal flying skills took over planes and crashed them into symbols of our wealth and power. That day will be etched in our memory and has changed life in the US forever.
On December 26, 2004, more than 280,000 people were swept into eternity by a tsunami in the Indian Ocean. They were alive on the 25th and gone the following day. Besides the deaths, injuries and property damage made a devastating difference in the lives of the masses of people who were left behind.
Other days in history made even more significant differences. The day before JESUS died on the cross, we were destined to pay the price for our own sins. The day He died the debt was paid, but it only makes a difference to us the day we accept JESUS as our LORD and SAVIOR and that payment He made. That is the day we change from a sentence of eternal death to a future of eternal life. What a difference that day can make!
Wayne Lance (2015) – That’s Good News to Share!