For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God -
Ephesians 2:8

      A little girl was lost in the woods. A chaplain was called in to offer comfort to her anxious, waiting parents as the helicopters flew overhead, and the search teams were organizing.
      The Chaplain was informed by the parents that they were atheists. The Chaplain received this news graciously and continued to comfort them by her confidence that the child would be found unharmed, privately, praying to the Lord to make her words come true.
      The search continued for hours, still no sign of the child. The dogs could not pick up any scent and they were eventually called back. The decision was made to send for another officer and his dog in order to gain a “fresh nose.”
      The dog’s name was Grace.
      She took off with her master into the woods. Some time passed. The Chaplain tried her best to keep her parents from thinking the worst.
      Then they looked up and to their unspeakable relief, they saw their little girl hand in hand with the officer walking toward them across the parking lot with Grace triumphantly leading the way.
      God speaks to us any way He can, sometimes in life’s parables like this one.
      The only one who could locate the atheist’s missing child was named Grace. Their little girl was “saved by Grace.”
      I hope someday they will be able to look back upon this incident in their lives and not miss the punchline.

copyright 2008 by H.D. Shively