A Friend's Fast For The Healing Of A Nation

Daryl, now director of EMU's Center for Justice and Peacebuilding, has been an exemplary role model for many.

I've had the privilege of knowing Daryl Byler ever since he was a lad growing up in the church where I served as pastor for over two decades. He and his wife Cindy have been a special blessing to us and to many others here in the area, as well as in far off places like Mississippi, Jordan and other locations where they have lived and served.

I was especially moved by Daryl's latest decision to go on a water and juice fast during Lent as he prays daily for the world's healing and writes letters and tweets regularly to President Trump and some of his religious supporters and advisors.

In an email response yesterday to my inquiry about how he was doing, he wrote,

"My energy level has been good and am grateful that I've been able to walk to and from work each day. Cindy has been a wonderful and understanding source of support and so many persons have been offering prayers and encouraging words. I feel blessed and cared for in this journey. The most challenging part has not been the fasting (I don't feel hungry), but working on a new reflection each day -- specifically, trying to find a healthy balance between challenging the President's words and actions, and setting a tone of invitation and dialogue."

You can follow the insightful daily reflections Daryl writes for the president at https://healingjusticefast.wordpress.com/  Let's continue to pray for Daryl through the remaining days of Lent, and join him in praying and in some fasting of our own for our nation's healing.

Here's a link to an interview Daryl did recently for our local TV station: 
http://www.whsv.com/content/news/1on1-An-EMU-leader-is-doing-a-40-day-fast-415720253.html

And here is an earlier post on Daryl's late father, a truly good man and mentor: 
http://harvyoder.blogspot.com/2016/12/jesse-t-byler-1928-1990-beloved-mentor.html