A fourteen-year-old ranch kid camping near Greycliff, Montana used his rodeo lariat to rescue a man being swept away in the fast-moving Yellowstone River after a boating accident.
God has a clear plan for each of our lives. He puts us in exact places at the exact right time for His purpose. When we step up with faith, our humble skills become powerful means of His grace and mercy.
It all happened on July 5 near Greycliff when a raft and a paddleboard hit a bridge pillar on the Yellowstone River. Four people ended up in the fast water. Three got out on the shore, but one man was drifting fast while holding onto a cooler.
Fourteen-year-old Jory Thomas was camping right there with his family. He heard the urgent calls for help and moved fast.
“Only thing I could focus on was helping him get out of the water because I didn’t want to see anyone go in front of me,” Jory said. He emptied out his pockets, waded through a waist-deep channel, and ran down the riverbank to reach the man.
Surprisingly, Jory had brought his 12-foot lariat with him that day. His grandmother, Sandy Thomas, said he had never packed his rope on camping trips before. Jory had been practicing hard every evening on a roping dummy to handle cattle at local brandings.
Reaching the shore, he threw his loop out over the water. “First instinct I thought was try and rope him and drag him out before he gets too far down the river,” he said. “Luckily, I caught him first try.”
He dragged the man safely through chest-deep water until first responders arrived. His dad and brothers serve on the local fire department, so helping people runs deep in his family.
Jory gave all credit to the Lord, saying, “God was basically putting me in the place of all this. God was just telling me all of this at the time and saying, ‘Go get him, you got it, and I believe in you.'” His grandmother added, “His first instinct always is to help other people.”
This story clearly shows us how God prepares us for His purpose in ways we never imagine. Jory had spent countless evenings working hard on his roping skills, thinking it was just for catching cattle at local brandings, but God had a completely different plan in mind. He was actually training those young hands to save a human life from a dangerous river.
Take David. He was just a young shepherd boy watching over his father’s sheep. But God was preparing him all along for the day he would face Goliath and save Israel.
God is doing the very same thing in our lives too. He is preparing us for purposes far greater than we realize. We might think a simple skill we have isn’t very important, but we never know how God will use that very thing to bless others.
Another striking part of Jory’s story is how God nudged him to bring his rope along that day. When we feel that gentle nudge from the Holy Spirit to do something or reach out to a neighbor, we should listen to His voice and step out in faith, just as Jory did.
“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” – Ephesians 2:10
WATCH: Teen Ropes Drowning Man Out Of Raging Yellowstone River
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