Recently I heard Terry Anderson speak at the University of South Dakota. Some of the readers of this column will remember the day he was released from the gloom of a Beirut prison four years ago on December 4th, 1991. Terry Anderson had been with the Associated Press in Lebanon when he was kidnapped and taken captive for seven years, or 2,454 days. He was chained to a wall in prison and lived at the uncertain mercy of his captors.

As I listened to his tremendously moving experiences, I thought about another prisoner, Dr. Viktor Frankl, who spent three years of his life in a Nazi prison camp. Dr. Frankl stated that "the only way to come through such torture is to maintain hope and have the will to live." There were times for Terry when life seemed hopeless at a most difficult time. During the first weeks he asked for a Bible. He was granted that request and had that Bible throughout those years of hoping to be released. He learned that the human spirit can reach beyond the bars of a prison, that the Spirit can never be held hostage. Nietzsche once wrote, "That which does not destroy me makes me stronger."

Terry Anderson today lives in a suburb in New York City with his wife and daughter. His book "Den of Lions" is an eloquently told story of his years spent in the den of lions. He was the last one of the prisoners to be set free. The recent events that have taken place in the Middle East have again touched our hearts. The grief is too deep for revenge and our hearts longing for that peace on earth that the angels sang on the shepherd hills so long ago. Shalom, the word for "peace" bears a meaning of something much more than a truce for more. It has to do with the nature of the heart. Peace can be experienced deep inside, it is a quietness, a stillness that is not easily shaken. Peace, sweet peace.

Warm Thought: For me, managing change quite literally meant survival. Terry Anderson. Have a beautiful December day filled with peaceful thoughts.

Warm Thoughts from the Little Home on the Prairie Over a Cup of Tea by the Luetta G. Werner

Published in the Marion Record on December 7th, 1995.

Download the Found Photo Freebie and cherish your memories of the past.

Enjoy flipping through the Vintage Photo Book on your coffee table.

I hope you enjoyed this podcast episode! Please follow along on this journey by going to visualbenedictions.com or following me on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest. You can listen to the podcast on Apple Podcast, Spotify, Stitcher, and Overcast. And don’t forget to rate and review so more people can tune in! I’d greatly appreciate it.

Till next time,

Trina