| Review – Let's Roll! |
|
by
Lisa Beamer with Ken Abraham
Review by Tom Gilbert
Life defining moments. There can come a time in
each of our lives when things are suddenly turned
upside down. When the world as we know it changes instantly
and forever. The loss of innocence that comes with
sudden tragedy is not something we may be prepared
for.
How any of us will respond when that happens to us
is hard to predict. If you believe in God and
Jesus and the promise of eternal life then your
take on tragedy will be different from those who
don’t have that faith.
Let’s
Roll! Ordinary People, Extraordinary Courage
(by Lisa Beamer with Ken Abraham/Tyndale Publisher)
is a national bestseller. The book captures the
heroic character of Todd Beamer. It tells of his
involvement, along with other brave passengers,
in preventing Flight 93 from becoming an additional
weapon of huge destruction on September 11, 2001.
This book, however, is much more than a gripping
account of the events surrounding the ill-fated
flight on 9-11. It’s also a tale of two people
very much in love – in love with each other and with
God.
We may never know with certainty what target
the terrorists intended to fly Flight 93 into.
We can easily assume it was another major US
landmark,
such as the Capitol building or the White House.
Thanks to Todd Beamer and the other heroes aboard
Flight 93 that plane didn’t reach its designated
target.
It did still crash in a rural field in Pennsylvania
and all the lives on-board were lost.
“Let’s Roll!” became a rallying cry after 9-11.
In the book we learn from Lisa Beamer, wife of
Todd, that this was a phrase he often used with
his family. It was Todd’s way of saying,
“c’mon, time to get a move on”
or “let’s do it”. That it became
the final recorded words of this hero is fitting.
Todd Beamer was not the only hero of the day,
of course, and after reading the book I conclude
Lisa Beamer is every bit the hero he was. She
has bravely faced the tragedy. She continues to
live with the challenge of raising her three children,
one of whom was born three months after that fateful
day. She’s coping with the loss of her beloved
husband. She’s showing through her story
that courage and faith in God do shine forth in
so-called ordinary people.
The book begins with that fateful day in September,
but the first chapter leaves you on edge. Todd
Beamer had taken a very early morning flight out
of Newark. He’d left the home before the
rest of his family was up. By the time Lisa awoke
and had turned on the TV the tragic events of
the day were unfolding. The World Trade centers
were in flames, followed soon by the Pentagon
being hit. Our country was under a surreal terrorist
attack. The book takes you back to it in a flash.
Before continuing on with the events of that sad day
we’re taken back in time to learn the story
of Todd and Lisa, their stories and even some
background on their parents. We come to know and
love them for the young, vibrant and caring couple
they were. Like so many of us, they were pursuing
the American Dream. However, their very real faith
in God set a foundation that held strong when
the winds of a tragic storm hit them in a very
personal way.
As I was reading this middle part of the book, at
times I was impatient to move on with what happened
on Flight 93. I wanted to know more details about
the struggle and the heroism. I was looking for
the action.
What I discovered was that the stories of Lisa and
Todd, of their growing up, their college years,
their courtship, marriage and life together were
really necessary to appreciate this story. For
the book is much more than a recounting of what
happened on Flight 93. It’s more than those
acts of heroism in the face of certain death.
It’s about dealing with life’s tragedies
and making it through because of a real faith
in God and the acts of support and love that come
about when fellow believers bond together. Those
acts of love took place that day on Flight 93.
There were tremendous acts of love and support from
others, too. Lisa Jefferson, a call supervisor
for GTE Airfone, talked at length with Todd Beamer
during the hijacking. Her conversation has been
a source of comfort for Lisa Beamer as well as
family members and friends. Certainly it was a
source of comfort for Todd that morning. He made
sure to convey the importance of his wife knowing
how much he loved her. He also shared his faith
and prayed the “Lord’s prayer”
with Ms. Jefferson.
Lisa Beamer has had to deal with some extraordinary
events. She has bravely, yet humanly, faced the
loss of her husband. Her thrust into the heat
of the media limelight was not something she shied
away from, but rather she let God work through
her to find the words to say, to respond to the
many painful questions.
Being thrust into the national spotlight, meeting
the President, enduring numerous media interviews,
writing this book, the creation of the Todd
M. Beamer Foundation — this
is the stuff of a lifetime crammed into a year.
Now, life goes on. She’s dealing with the challenges
of single parenting, and getting tough questions
from small children. She’s also getting
blessings from those same children as they show
her how important simple things can be.
The way Lisa Beamer bears up under the immense pressure
and grief is very admirable. Her humility, however,
shines through. She shows us that with God we
can face anything, even tragic loss, and survive
and help others in their struggles. It’s
a classic example of God working to bring good
out of the seemingly unfair bad in this world.
In the book’s final chapter Lisa Beamer
says as much. When you read this book you, too,
can come to appreciate the Beamer family rally:
“Let’s roll!”.
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Scripture taken from
the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®.Copyright
© 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society.
All rights reserved throughout the world. Used by
permission of International Bible Society.
NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION® and NIV® are
registered trademarks of International Bible Society.
Use of either trademark for the offering of goods
or services requires the prior written consent of
International Bible Society.
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from
the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright
©1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House
Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, IL 60189, USA. All rights
reserved.
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