Dear Gino,

Your post was profound. Of course you weren't a coward! You are human. I reckon there is not a single one of us who would have behaved any differently. Even if we were built like the Incredible Hulk in full rage! The large man took you by surprise. He shocked you. Your poor brain was probably in overdrive - trying to process and evaluate the situation. The whole saga made you think, though. It made all of us, who read your story, think. How would we have behaved? We are all asking ourselves that. I probably would have done the typical woman thing - scream like a banshee on fire then leg it out of that alley as fast as I could. Haha. Your wise words re the empowering of the Holy Spirit, in fraught situations are so true. If we are ever faced with the situation where we were being asked to renounce our faith or die..........I fully believe the Holy Spirit will strengthen us, calm us and lead us. Almighty God has promised us that He will never give us more than we can cope with. 1 Corinthians 10:13

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Corinthians+10%3A13&version=NIV

As a teenager, I read all the Holocaust books - fiction and non-fiction, that I could get my hands on. I often wondered how I would have behaved - not as a Jew - but as a young, immature, brainwashed German. Would I have been intimidated enough to play the Nazi game? Would I have kept quiet as the atrocities were hammered out, day in and day out? It's a horrible, horrible thought and I thank Almighty God I never had to face that. From a position of knowledge of scripture and maturity, I can truly say I would never, ever be party to atrocities of any sort. But these are different times and I am older. *SHIVER* at the thought, though.

Young Nathan said, in his testimony of his visit to Heaven - Everything is from Heaven. Even when you stub your toe. Every single thing is allowed or not allowed by God. He is fully in charge. So, while you were frozen with horror in that alley - Almighty God had your back the whole time. But - it was allowed to happen for a reason. You would not be our precious brother Gino, without all of your life experiences.

I hope to see you soon, brother. God Bless you.