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I should\u2019ve stayed with my unit. Bright flashes of color told me the oxygen\nin my suit was running low, not that it would\u2019ve mattered. My cracked ribs\nkept me from inhaling too deeply, even though I knew I should. Short,\nstaccato breaths were all I could manage as I glanced for the thousandth\ntime at the flashing light on my communicator. I didn\u2019t answer it.\n.\nThis was my own fault. The Commander ordered us not to engage the enemy\nwhile we scouted, but I thought that one had been alone. I remembered how\none grey insectoid had hunched over its kill and ripped into it with\nserrated mandibles. I\u2019d thought I had a clear shot from behind my tree, not\nknowing that on this alien world, the invasive parasites liked to climb.\n.\nLuckily for me, one of the insectoids above me was just as impulsive as I\nwas and attacked alone. Somehow, I managed to escape that brief scuffle\nbefore the swarm could coordinate.\n.\nNow, I lay curled up in the forest, camouflaged by a net of vines that\nnearly blocked out the scarlet sky. My wrist comm blinked the same red\ncolor underneath the vines, demanding attention. I jammed a button with my\ngloved finger and gasped out, Yes, Sir?\n.\nWhere are you, Lieutenant? The Commander\u2019s voice was a mixture of concern\nand relief.\n.\nDeep in enemy territory, Sir. They\u2019re everywhere. I just wanted to say\nThis is it for me. I\u2019m sorry. I should\u2019ve listened.\n.\nSend me your coordinates.\n.\nDid he think he could rescue me? A voice cut through the fog of my brain to\nremind me that he had the rest of the unit to think of and I wasn\u2019t worth\nit. Finally I said, I don\u2019t think you heard me \n.\nNo, you didn\u2019t hear me. You need to trust me.\n.\nHe was right. I sent the coordinates just before my eyes fluttered shut.\nThey didn\u2019t open again until I lay in our ship\u2019s medical bay with the\nCommander\u2019s hand on my shoulder. He looked at me with love in his eyes and\nsaid, You are worth it. Andrea Hargrove\n.\n In Matthew 18:12-14, Jesus likens us to lost sheep. Can you think of a\ntime when you disobeyed God so badly or so often that you felt He shouldn\u2019t\nforgive you? What does this Bible passage reveal about God\u2019s forgiveness?\n(If you want to dig deeper, read Luke 15.) \n.\n Has anyone else ever done something so bad that you felt they shouldn\u2019t\nbe forgiven? What does the Bible have to say about this? (Read Romans\n8:33-34.) \n.\n God\u2019s love for you is so deep, there is nothing you could do to make Him\nstop loving you. He was willing to die on the cross so that you could be\nforgiven and live with Him forever. How does this make Him a trustworthy\ncommander?\n.\nDo not withhold your mercy from me, Lord; may your love and faithfulness\nalways protect me. For troubles without number surround me; my sins have\novertaken me, and I cannot see. They are more than the hairs of my head,\nand my heart fails within me. Be pleased to save me, Lord; come\nquickly, Lord, to help me. Psalm 40:11-13 (NIV)\n\xa0\nRead Verses:\nMatthew 18:12-Matthew 18:14; Psalm 40:11-Psalm 40:13; Proverbs 3:5-Proverbs 3:6