THREE ANGELS BROADCASTING NETWORK DEVOTIONAL
God’s Rookie Firefighter.
By Joe O’Brien December 23rd, 2025
“I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress… in Him I will trust.” Psalm 91:2
I was working in Silicon Valley, engineering telephone traffic for a large company, but after three years, I realized I was too young to spend my life sitting at a desk. So I found a city that needed three new firefighters. Ninety-seven people took the exams, and the top three of us were hired.
During training, I kept noticing a plaque on the wall. It listed the names of the firefighters who had given their lives in the line of duty. The most recent loss of life occurred when a firefighter was on a ladder working a hose through a second-floor window. The internal supporting walls burned through, and the outside wall supporting his ladder collapsed with him into the center of the fire.
Then one night, it happened. While the crews were asleep, the lights flashed on, and the bells rang out a code telling us which engines were being dispatched. We jumped into our turnout gear and slid down the brass pole. (I loved it.) I jumped onto the tailboard of Engine #1 and hung on for dear life! I watched the skyline for the familiar glow that said there would be no more sleep that night.
Upon arrival, we found a three-story wooden structure fully involved. Our company was told to extend a ladder to a second-floor window, lay a hose to the window, and work the fire. I chose to lay the line and work the fire. When I reached the top, I secured the hose to the beam of the ladder and signaled the engineer to charge the line. But as I worked the fire, it occurred to me that I was in the same position as the last firefighter who had lost his life.
And that’s when it happened. The wall my ladder leaned against began to collapse into the fire. There was no time for anything except to holler, “God help me!” and suddenly, the wall jolted to a stop. I shut off the nozzle, put my boots on the beams of the ladder, and slid down as fast as I dared. God hears short prayers!
“He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him....” Psalm 91:15
God’s Rookie Firefighter.
By Joe O’Brien December 23rd, 2025
“I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress… in Him I will trust.” Psalm 91:2
I was working in Silicon Valley, engineering telephone traffic for a large company, but after three years, I realized I was too young to spend my life sitting at a desk. So I found a city that needed three new firefighters. Ninety-seven people took the exams, and the top three of us were hired.
During training, I kept noticing a plaque on the wall. It listed the names of the firefighters who had given their lives in the line of duty. The most recent loss of life occurred when a firefighter was on a ladder working a hose through a second-floor window. The internal supporting walls burned through, and the outside wall supporting his ladder collapsed with him into the center of the fire.
Then one night, it happened. While the crews were asleep, the lights flashed on, and the bells rang out a code telling us which engines were being dispatched. We jumped into our turnout gear and slid down the brass pole. (I loved it.) I jumped onto the tailboard of Engine #1 and hung on for dear life! I watched the skyline for the familiar glow that said there would be no more sleep that night.
Upon arrival, we found a three-story wooden structure fully involved. Our company was told to extend a ladder to a second-floor window, lay a hose to the window, and work the fire. I chose to lay the line and work the fire. When I reached the top, I secured the hose to the beam of the ladder and signaled the engineer to charge the line. But as I worked the fire, it occurred to me that I was in the same position as the last firefighter who had lost his life.
And that’s when it happened. The wall my ladder leaned against began to collapse into the fire. There was no time for anything except to holler, “God help me!” and suddenly, the wall jolted to a stop. I shut off the nozzle, put my boots on the beams of the ladder, and slid down as fast as I dared. God hears short prayers!
“He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him....” Psalm 91:15
THREE ANGELS BROADCASTING NETWORK DEVOTIONAL
God’s Rookie Firefighter.
By Joe O’Brien December 23rd, 2025
“I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress… in Him I will trust.” Psalm 91:2
I was working in Silicon Valley, engineering telephone traffic for a large company, but after three years, I realized I was too young to spend my life sitting at a desk. So I found a city that needed three new firefighters. Ninety-seven people took the exams, and the top three of us were hired.
During training, I kept noticing a plaque on the wall. It listed the names of the firefighters who had given their lives in the line of duty. The most recent loss of life occurred when a firefighter was on a ladder working a hose through a second-floor window. The internal supporting walls burned through, and the outside wall supporting his ladder collapsed with him into the center of the fire.
Then one night, it happened. While the crews were asleep, the lights flashed on, and the bells rang out a code telling us which engines were being dispatched. We jumped into our turnout gear and slid down the brass pole. (I loved it.) I jumped onto the tailboard of Engine #1 and hung on for dear life! I watched the skyline for the familiar glow that said there would be no more sleep that night.
Upon arrival, we found a three-story wooden structure fully involved. Our company was told to extend a ladder to a second-floor window, lay a hose to the window, and work the fire. I chose to lay the line and work the fire. When I reached the top, I secured the hose to the beam of the ladder and signaled the engineer to charge the line. But as I worked the fire, it occurred to me that I was in the same position as the last firefighter who had lost his life.
And that’s when it happened. The wall my ladder leaned against began to collapse into the fire. There was no time for anything except to holler, “God help me!” and suddenly, the wall jolted to a stop. I shut off the nozzle, put my boots on the beams of the ladder, and slid down as fast as I dared. God hears short prayers!
“He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him....” Psalm 91:15
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