¡GRACIAS, SEÑOR! The world watched for 69 days to see if the Chilean miners would be saved. When the 33 men began emerging from the rescue pod after a half-mile journey to the surface, millions of television viewers around the world rejoiced in the power of modern technology. But that multitude also saw a testimony to another, greater power: many of the miners wore T-shirts featuring the words ¡Gracias, Señor!—“Thank you, Lord!” Some of the miners testified to their faith in God in other ways. While still trapped, one of the miners wrote, “There are actually 34 of us because God has never left us down here.” It’s one thing to say praise God while sitting in a comfortable sanctuary; it’s quite another thing to praise him while trapped underground for weeks on end! THANK YOU, LORD Not everyone who watched the miners step into freedom last week was praising God for the rescue. No doubt many simply marveled at the technology that made the rescue possible. Times of crisis can reveal where our ultimate trust lies. Those who know the one who is king of all creation can say “Thank you, Lord” through all the challenges of life. 1. What will the rescued miners have to do now to disprove the idea that their expressions of

faith merely reaffirm the old cliché that “There are no atheists in foxholes”? 2. Why do otherwise irreligious people praise God when saved from calamity? 3. What are some things you see today that continue to confirm the psalmist’s view that God is

to be praised? 4. What hinders some people from praising God? 5. What has to happen for people to praise God no matter what?

—Charles R. Boatman

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