After
high school, Darrell Blizzard left the orphanage where he grew up to join the
US Army Air Corps. World War II was in full swing, and soon he faced
responsibilities usually given to older and more experienced men. He told a
reporter years later that a four-mule plow team was the biggest thing he’d
driven before he became the pilot of a four-engine B-17. Now in his late
eighties, he said, “We were all just kids flying those things.”
In the
Bible, we find accounts of many people who followed God courageously when they
were young. In a situation of corrupt spiritual leadership, “Samuel ministered
before the Lord, even as a child” (1 Sam. 2:18). David faced the giant Goliath
in spite of being told, “You are not able to go against this Philistine . . .
for you are a youth” (17:33). Mary, the mother of Jesus, was most likely very
young when she was told she would bear the Son of God. She responded to the
angel’s announcement by saying, “Let it be to me according to your word” (Luke
1:38). Paul told the young pastor Timothy, “Let no one despise your youth, but
be an example to the believers” (1 Tim. 4:12).
God values each one in His family. In His strength, the young can be bold in their faith, while those who are older can encourage those who are “just kids.”
