THE CABINS

The two men entered the front door, knocking things over and searching for money or anything of value. Chris and his family remained very quiet; hearts were pounding with each footstep. Elsie was confused and wanted to get out of the big tub now, it was no longer fun. It was crowded in the tub, and she was being squeezed. Ellen didn’t speak, she just shook her head indicating no, and gave Elsie a very serious look. Picking up on the fact that her mom was scared, she burrowed into her mom more and kept quiet. A woman’s voice was heard. Chris was trying to make out what was being said. There was nothing of value in their cabin, most of what was there only had emotional significance to them. It didn’t sound as if they were going to dash through the house and move on. It sounded more like they were settling in. This could only mean trouble for the family. Chris’s concern heightened for his family, how was he going to protect them with only a rod in his hand? The verse that came to him was, “You shall break them with a rod of iron; You shall dash them to pieces like a potter’s vessel (Psalm 2:9 NKJV).” God would have to provide the skill and strength needed to defend his family, at this moment. He had hoped these murderous people would find whatever they were looking for and move on, and his family could somehow escape this terror. These men approaching the family cabin had stolen small valuables from the other cabins and apparently had shot anyone in sight, leaving a trail of bodies over the mountainside. This was information unknown to the family, but they had witnessed a man being shot, so they knew that these individuals were dangerous. The next cabin in their line of sight appeared empty, having moved away from the other cabins with dead bodies lying around, they decided to stay the night in the less occupied cabin before moving on. It was clear that they showed no fear of being caught, they moved about nonchalantly, without a care. Chris couldn’t hear any discussion regarding them fleeing the mountainside, apparently, they were in no hurry to vacate the area. Why would they linger around such a heinous crime scene? Now trying to think, how many cabins had been rented or were occupied over the weekend? How many cabins had these people entered? Did they know the victims that they shot or was it random? How many people were caught up in this tragedy? Would they be next? Would the cleaning crews from the rental properties come across the bodies? When would they be coming to do their cleaning? How long would Elsie be able to remain quiet? This was a time for silent prayers to be lifted. Psalm 32:7,8 (NASB) came to mind. “You are my hiding place; You preserve me from trouble; You surround me with songs of deliverance. I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you.” Ellen was silently crying, tears rolling down her face, gripped with fear, wishing that they had left a day earlier. Realizing the danger that they were in, it was like being a kid again, glad that her father was nearby, he had reached around the tub and was patting her shoulder for comfort. There was an aching for her mother’s wisdom and was thankful for her mother encouraging her to memorize Scripture verses. It never occurred to her that she would need to lift prayer under these circumstances. She realized now that she wouldn’t always have a Bible close by to refer to, therefore it was important to have God’s Word in your heart. Her mother had always told her that the Lord likes for us to repeat His Word to Him, there is power in His Word. With a silent prayer she lifted the words she knew. “Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, Out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man. For You are my hope, O Lord GOD; You are my trust from my youth. By You I have been upheld from birth; You are He who took me out of my mother’s womb. My praise shall be continually of You (Psalm 71:4-6 NKJV).” It was not a matter of whether she would lay down her life for her family, it was a matter of how she was to protect them, at all costs. Was she to offer herself up as a prize to these two men as a distraction, while the others ran for cover in the woods? Eventually they would come into this bathroom and notice them. There was no way to discuss a plan with her husband without being heard. If she moved around in the tub, it could create noise. She knew that the tub was suggested for cover in case they started shooting, but now it seemed they were trapped in the tub. It was felt that Chris was going through the same emotions that she was experiencing. She knew her husband to be a brave man, but how was he to fight off bullets? It may come to the wiles of a woman to bargain for the life of her family. The courage would have to be summoned to do what was necessary. The verse that came to mind was Joshua 1:9 (NIV) “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.”