Keep Telling Them
Warning: this article may include some triggering images and heartbreaking truths so please be aware.
We are in a constant battle between light and dark. John 1:5 says, “The light shines in the darkness, the darkness has not overcome it.” But some days it feels like it comes awfully close. Yesterday, two young children were shot getting off a Metrobus. Last week a 6-year-old shot his teacher. And the first person killed in the DC area for 2023 was a 13-year-old boy. There are new signs in the District that say “Thou Shall Not Kill.” I am sure you have seen stories like this or seen the families that were changed forever by these moments. If you do not have a story of loss in your community that changed everything and you will never forget, you will. As radio people, we are called to speak God’s Word directly into the hearts of those fighting darkness right alongside us. I was reminded of the darkness I will never forget in the world about 4:30 am one morning.
My phone started buzzing a strange signal I did not recognize and, as you probably have experienced, anyone trying to reach me at that time needs to talk to me. I jumped up and grabbed my phone; flipping it over, I saw the notification for an Amber Alert. For most everyone, seeing that on your screen might be a reason to put your phone down and go back to bed. But for me, it was this heavy reminder that a little girl went missing years ago named Amber..
My husband and I were working in Dallas/Fort Worth radio when Amber Hagerman went missing. Most of us that receive an Amber Alert don’t know that it was named after a precious little girl. Her smiling face started scrolling across television screens when she was snatched while riding her bicycle with her brother. We covered it on air (we were in Country radio), and we prayed off air. My nieces were about her age when all of this was happening and I remembering begging God to bring Amber home and keep my nieces safe.
Groups of people searched, churches held vigils and we reported each day until a sock was found in a ravine. That lead to finding Amber and the mourning began. And the decisions to do more to help find children who went missing. his type of darkness in our lives brings people closer, looking for answers. I will never forget the collective sadness we all felt.
That night, I laid back down with a heavy heart. Then God reminded me of my only part in fighting that level of evil: keep showing up and telling them about Jesus. It can feel like too much sometimes and our human brains will try to go into “fix” mode but all we must do is turn on the mike and keep telling them about Jesus. We may have heard stories of radio people who could not show up after a disaster, who left their listeners and their coworkers without the voice they had come to know and love. We have grace for them and hope they are now where they feel God would have them.
For the Called, God will equip us to stand strong and minister when evil appears to win. It’s right in Genesis 50:20, “As far as I am concerned, God turned into good what you meant for evil, for he brought me to this high position I have today so that I could save the lives of many people.” Next time your phone buzzes or rings and you find yourself on the end of terrible news, you can reaffirm for yourself that you are doing what God has called you to do. Because you keep showing up and telling them about Jesus.
