My Ongoing Thoughts

REFILL AS NEEDED

7/11/2019

When I was a boy growing up on a farm down in Georgia, we raised lots of cows and hogs. Technically, we were not farmers, as other than our personal garden, we really only harvested corn and hay in order to feed our livestock. The more proper term for what we did, therefore, was animal husbandry.

But whatever you call it, I learned early on that livestock had to be cared for daily – meaning mostly that they had to be fed and watered every single day. And my father and grandfather made it plain to me that it was my job to see that all this got done.

To facilitate this, they brought in a bulldozer and created a small retaining pond on the creek that ran through our property from which we could draw water for the various animals housed in pens and stables. From time to time, we also used the pond for irrigation purposes. But even as a small lad, I realized that the level of water in the pond had to be managed carefully.

Especially during the dry summer months, the pond needed time to replenish itself. Otherwise, it would be sucked dry. However, left to itself, without us overly taxing its content, it would eventually refill. The obvious lesson I learned back then was that we had to be careful not to take more out of the pond than it could sustain.

I share this because I have come to realize that the human spirit is much the same. As one who communicates regularly, through preaching, teaching, and writing, I know what it can be like to have one’s levels of creativity run low.

Like Elijah of old, who more than once rested and replenished his body and spirit before continuing the ministry God had given him, I will be taking a little time off over the next week or two in order to allow my own well of creativity to replenish itself. I will resume posting when my reservoir has once again been filled.

SCRIPTURE SOURCES: Elijah rested multiple times in chapters 17-19 of the Old Testament book of I Kings. Cf.: https://biblehub.com/bsb/1_kings/17.htm, and https://biblehub.com/bsb/1_kings/19.htm.

HEART OF GOLD

7/8/2019

Lynn Jost holds a PhD from Vanderbilt University and is a Professor of Old Testament and Director of the Center for Anabaptist Studies at Fresno Pacific University in Fresno, California. He shares the following story about what happened during the reign of King Frederick William III of Prussia.

It seems that the king found himself and his nation in trouble. Wars had been costly; and in trying to build the nation, he was seriously short of finances. He couldn’t disappoint his people; and to capitulate to the enemy was unthinkable.

So, after careful reflection, he decided to ask the women of Prussia to bring their jewelry of gold and silver to be melted down for their country. For each ornament received, he determined to exchange a decoration of bronze or iron as a symbol of his gratitude. Each decoration would thus be inscribed, “I gave gold for iron, 1813” or “I gave silver for iron, 1813”, etc...

The response was overwhelming. Even more important, these women prized their gifts from the king more highly than they did their former jewelry. The reason, of course, is clear. The decorations were proof that they had sacrificed for their king. Indeed, it became unfashionable to wear iron jewelry; and thus was established the Order of the Iron Cross. Members wore no ornaments except a cross of iron, in order for all to see their true devotion.

Dr. Jost goes on to assert that when Christians come to their King, they too are called to exchange the flourishes of their former life for a cross.

This past Sunday, I shared a message from the New Testament Gospel of Luke, chapter 19, verses 1-10, on Zacchaeus titled "When Worlds Collide". The Bible makes plain that before he met Jesus Christ, Zacchaeus lived a self-centered and self-enriching life. But after he came to know Jesus, he made a 180 degree turnabout.

According to verse 8, he became so convicted by His devotion to His Master that he pledged to give half of his earthly possessions to the poor, and also to repay fourfold to anyone he had previously cheated.

In short, Zacchaeus demonstrated what it means to become a committed follower of Jesus Christ. For in the New Testament Gospel of Mark, chapter 8, verse 34, Jesus once told His disciples that those would follow Him must first deny themselves and take up their cross.

In effect, Zacchaeus did just that. Like the women of Prussia, he traded gold for a cross! And in the process, he helped to strengthen and advance the Kingdom of God – both on earth and in Heaven!

Of course, all of this raises crucial questions for us; does it not? What exactly have we traded for the cross? What exactly have we sacrificed for the Kingdom of God? What exactly have we given up for the glory of our Savior?

STORY SOURCE: Available widely online. See, for instance: https://bible.org/illustration/i-gave-gold-iron.

SEE ALSO: https://www.fresno.edu/person/367/lynn-jost-phd.

SCRIPTURE SOURCES: https://biblehub.com/luke/19-1.htm;
and https://biblehub.com/mark/8-34.htm.

THREE CHEERS!

7/4/2019

Earlier today, I attended a patriotic function in which the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America was proudly recited by all present. This was immediately followed by the hardy singing of the National Anthem by the same group. Of course, both of these patriotic expressions are dear to the heart of the vast majority of Americans. What is more, both also have official sanction for their usage.

Our National Anthem, titled "The Star-Spangled Banner", was first recognized for official use by the United States Navy in 1889. It gained great traction during World War One, before eventually being made the official United States National Anthem by Congressional resolution and Presidential signature on March 3, 1931.

A few years later, the Pledge of Allegiance to the United States Flag was officially adopted by the United Sates Congress in the first year of World War Two in 1942.

Little did I know, as this day began, that a third such official expression, called "The American Creed", also exists. I am glad that I have now discovered its existence.

This third expression of American patriotism came about during World War One, when a Maryland man named William Tyler Page won a nationwide 1917 patriotic contest for "the best summary of American political faith founded upon things fundamental in American history and tradition".

Shortly thereafter, on April 3, 1918, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution formally accepting the statement as "The American's Creed".

I thought it appropriate, therefore, to share this official, if little known document from American history with my readers on this special day in which we are celebrating our nation’s independence. Its two short paragraphs clearly remind us what our founding fathers well understood - that human responsibilities are always the source of human rights.

The officially adopted "American Creed" states:

"I believe in the United States of America, as a government of the people, by the people, for the people; whose just powers are derived from the consent of the governed; a democracy in a republic; a sovereign Nation of many sovereign States; a perfect union, one and inseparable; established upon those principles of freedom, equality, justice, and humanity for which American patriots sacrificed their lives and fortunes.

I therefore believe it is my duty to my country to love it, to support its Constitution, to obey its laws, to respect its flag, and to defend it against all enemies."

I, for one, proudly affirm this creed. I hope you do as well.

SOURCES:

http://www.usflag.org/american.creed.html;

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Creed.

NOTE: "The American Creed" by William Tyler Page is not to be confused with "An American's Creed" by Dean Alfange. "An American's Creed" (or simply "My Creed"), for the composition of which Alfrange was given an award in 1952 by the Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge, originally appeared in This Week Magazine. A condensed version later appeared in Reader's Digest in both the October 1952 and January 1954 issues. It reads as follows:

"I do not choose to be a common man. It is my right to be uncommon. I seek to develop whatever talents God gave me—not security. I do not wish to be a kept citizen, humbled and dulled by having the state look after me. I want to take the calculated risk; to dream and to build, to fail and to succeed. I refuse to barter incentive for a dole. I prefer the challenges of life to the guaranteed existence; the thrill of fulfillment to the stale calm of utopia. I will not trade freedom for beneficence nor my dignity for a handout. I will never cower before any earthly master nor bend to any threat. It is my heritage to stand erect, proud and unafraid; to think and act myself, enjoy the benefit of my creations and to face the world boldly and say – 'This, with God's help, I have done.' All this is what it means to be an American."

Cf.: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dean_Alfange.

EMBRACING OUR DESTINY

7/2/2019

In his book, All In: You Are One Decision Away From A Totally Different Life, author Mark Batterson relates the following account of what happened exactly 156 years ago today at a heretofore unknown little hamlet of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

A union officer in the Civil War named Joshua Chamberlain was a student of theology and a professor of rhetoric, but not really a soldier. Nonetheless, when duty called, Chamberlain answered. Along the way, he climbed the ranks to become Colonel of the 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment.

On July 2, 1863, Chamberlain and his three-hundred-soldier regiment were all that stood between the Confederates and certain defeat. At 2:30 P.M., the 15th and 47th Alabama infantry regiments of the Confederate army charged; but Chamberlain and his men held their ground.

Thereafter, a second, third, fourth, and fifth charge all followed. By the last charge, only 80 blue clad men stood standing. Chamberlain himself was knocked down by a bullet that hit his belt buckle; but the 24-year-old schoolteacher got right back up. Little did he know that this was to be his date with destiny.

When a certain Sergeant Tozier informed Chamberlain that no reinforcements were coming and his men were down to one round of ammunition per soldier, Chamberlain knew he needed to act decisively. Just then, a lookout informed Colonel Chamberlain that the Confederates were forming rank.

Of course, the rational thing to do at that point, with no ammunition and no reinforcements, would have been to surrender. But Chamberlain made a defining decision. In full view of the enemy, Chamberlain climbed onto a barricade of stones and gave a command. He pointed his sword forward and yelled, "Charge!"

Though vastly outnumbered, his men fixed bayonets and started running straight at the Confederate army. They caught them off guard by executing a great right wheel. The result was that, in what ranks as one of the most improbable victories in military history, 80 Union soldiers literally captured 4,000 Confederate soldiers inside of five minutes.

As astounding as that is, many historians believe that if Chamberlain had not charged when he did, the Confederate army would have gained the high ground, likely won the Battle of Gettysburg, and even eventually won the war. After all, just over the hill from where Chamberlain captured the Confederates lay an 80 mile stretch of railroad line running all the way into Washington, D.C. - one that was completely undefended by any Union Army!

And herein lies the great lesson for all of us: one man's courage definitely saved the day, likely saved the war, and even arguably saved the Union!

Batterson’s summary of that day’s events has particular meaning for me. Joshua Chamberlain’s great grandson, Charlie Chamberlain, was for years a member of the church where I currently serve as pastor. I was privileged to get to know this man in depth before he passed on to Heaven. As I did, I was blessed to hear him share with understandable pride about his famous forbear, who was later awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his exploits at Gettysburg.

Of course, Batterson’s whole point in including this illustration in his book is to make the very point that his sub-title asserts: on any given day, each and every one of us truly are just one decision away from a totally different life. We never know when destiny will come calling. But when it does, we, like Joshua Chamberlain of old, must be willing to step forward and answer the call. And if we are, we might well find out that we can change not only our own lives, but the lives of others around us forever!

To date, since its inception, a total of 3,524 United States Congressional Medals of Honor have been awarded. It is safe to say that not one of the recipients got out of bed the day they earned their medal with the stated intention of doing so. Nonetheless, in each and every case, when the opportunity presented itself, the would-be recipient stepped forward and acted bravely and decisively!

As a result, the lives of each and every American alive since that day have been affected. Our freedoms have been guaranteed and our future has been secured. Therefore, as we celebrate our nation’s independence over the next couple of days, I pray we will remember the willingness of these men and women to take whatever steps they were called upon to take on our behalf.

That willingness changed their destiny. It changed ours as well!

SOURCE: Mark Batterson, All In: You Are One Decision away from A Totally Different Life (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2013), pp. 33-34.

SEE ALSO: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joshua_Chamberlain.

AS WELL AS: http://www.mohhsus.com/medal-of-honor.

NO TURNING BACK!

6/28/2019

The year was 1519. Spanish explorer and conqueror Hernán Cortés had set sail from Cuba to Veracruz, Mexico with a crew of 600 men. Upon their arrival, Cortés' men knew that many of his men were already tired, discouraged, and fearful. He also knew that, without immediate results, many of them would most likely soon develop a desire to turn back and head home to their old life.

As legend now has it, Cortés decided to preempt this plan of action. Accordingly, he had the men burn their ships. Cortés instinctively understood that, with their ability to retreat to their previous way of life now gone, he and his men were now left no option but to press on toward their stated objective. Simply put, he removed their safety net!

The burning of those ships was a powerful statement. Far more than just separating he and his men from their old ways and old comfort zones, it symbolized what lay ahead. For it now represented the blazing fire within their hearts that would be needed to complete their mission, and in so doing, to be a part of something far greater than their own selves.

Thus it is that the phrase “burn your ships” has come down to us as reminder of making a total commitment. When we burn our ships, as it were, we let go of our safety nets and turn our focus from the past to the future. In so doing, we recognize that there is now no turning back to old habits or old ways or old securities. We then turn to face our destiny; and, without reservation, we boldly march forward!

I do not know how well Hernán Cortés knew the Bible. But I do know that the notion of “burning your ships” has a Biblical precedent. We read about this in the Old Testament Book of I Kings (chapter 19, verses 15-21) in the story of the call of the Prophet Elisha. The context is that the Prophet Elijah has been instructed by God to seek out Elisha and ordain him as his successor. Beginning in verse 15, we read:

19So Elijah went and found Elisha son of Shaphat plowing a field. There were twelve teams of oxen in the field, and Elisha was plowing with the twelfth team. Elijah went over to him and threw his cloak across his shoulders and then walked away. 20Elisha left the oxen standing there, ran after Elijah, and said to him, “First let me go and kiss my father and mother good-bye, and then I will go with you!”

Elijah replied, “Go on back, but think about what I have done to you.” 21So Elisha returned to his oxen and slaughtered them. He used the wood from the plow to build a fire to roast their flesh. He passed around the meat to the townspeople, and they all ate. Then he went with Elijah as his assistant.

To his credit, the young man Elisha demonstrates a total commitment to his new found calling. He slaughters his oxen and burns his plow to create a fire to cook the meat they provide. Then he gives away this meat to feed others, says his good-byes, and never looks back!

Thus we see in the story of the calling of the Prophet Elisha a young man who, like Alexander some 600 years later, and like Caesar some 800 years later, and like Cortés some 2500 years later, burns any connection he has to the past and all it provides.

For Elisha, after that day, gone were the comforts, the security, and the allure of the past. From that day onward, he was only going one direction: forward!

What about you? Do you have any ships that you need to burn today? Is your own future currently held in check by any inordinate connection to your past? If so, then why not strike the match and set your personal ships ablaze? You might be surprised to discover just how freeing it is. And also just how exhilarating!

SOURCES:

STORY SOURCE: Available widely in varying forms on the internet.
Cf.: https://blog.thecenterforsalesstrategy.com/burn-your-ships-how-to-be-a-great-leader; as well as https://www.weburntheship.com/the-story/.

NOTE: Some historians say that Cortés sunk his ship on the premise that they were no longer seaworthy. Either way, he removed any possible means of abandoning his agenda and retreating by sea.
Cf. : http://www.pbs.org/conquistadors/cortes/cortes_d00.html; as well as:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hern%C3%A1n_Cort%C3%A9s#Destroying_the_ships.

NOTE ALSO: The notion of burning one’s ships so as to prevent retreat has been variously attributed to many historical conquerors. Among them are Alexander the Great in his invasion of Asia (“We go home in Persian ships or we die!”), Julius Caesar, and even the Vikings.
Cf.: https://yeretsianonrealestateinvesting.wordpress.com/2019/05/27/burn-your-ships/.

SCRIPTURE SOURCE: https://biblehub.com/nlt/1_kings/19.htm.

READY, SET, GO!

6/24/2019

Paul Powell once told a story about a friend of his who was assigned to work in an evangelistic endeavor in northern Mississippi. One day he walked up to the porch of a man chewing tobacco and engaged in conversation.

When the time seemed appropriate, he said to him, “Are you a Christian?” The man replied, “No, the Christians live down the road about a mile.” He said, “Well, you don’t really understand what I’m talking about. Sir, are you lost?” “Lost?” he said, “why no, I’ve lived here all my life; and I know right where I am.”

“No, no,” said my friend. “Are you ready for the judgment?” The old man said, “Well, when is it gonna be?” The friend said, “Well, I don’t rightly know. It might be today or it might be tomorrow.” The old man said, “For Heaven’s sake, don’t tell my wife. She’ll want to go both days!”

Dr. Powell’s suggested application when sharing this humorous story was: “In witnessing, it’s important to explain things so people can understand you.” I have a slightly different application to suggest: “This man’s wife was willing to go both times if she had the opportunity.”

I know of another individual who was willing to go two times. His name was Philip; and he was one of the first seven Deacons in the early church. We read about him and his exploits in the eighth chapter of the New Testament Book of Acts.

As the chapter opens, persecution in Jerusalem has resulted in the dispersion of believers to outlying areas. Philip is led to make his way north to Samaria, where he is given the opportunity to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He responds to the direction of God’s Spirit, shares the good news, and sees many people believe and be baptized.

Almost immediately thereafter, he is directed to go south on the road to Gaza, where he encounters an Ethiopian eunuch returning from Jerusalem, and pondering the meaning of Isaiah’s prophecies. Given yet another opportunity to share Christ, he does so once again, and sees this man too believe and be baptized.

Twice Philip was given the command to go, twice he was given the opportunity to share Christ, and twice he was faithful to do so. As a result, twice he was able to see others have their lives changed.

While not everyone who follows Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior will be called upon to go to multiple places to share Christ, all who follow Him can be expected at some point to be called upon to go somewhere and share with someone, even if that is only across the street or across town rather than across the world.

I hope all of my readers who follow Christ will commit along with me to be willing to go and share whenever and wherever we are directed by God. After all, had someone else not been willing to do so, we ourselves might never have come to know Christ in the first place!

JOKE SOURCE: Paul Powell, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Retirement (Dallas: Texas Baptist Leadership Center, 2000), p. 51.

Cf.: https://www.baylor.edu/content/services/document.php?id=146507.

SCRIPTURE SOURCE: https://biblehub.com/kjv/acts/8.htm.

FREE AT LAST!

6/20/2019

Yours truly has been in utter bliss every Thursday evening in May and June of this year. That is because Turner Classic Movies (TCM) has been commemorating the 75th anniversary of D-Day with two months of programming that honors “the courage and sacrifice that was required to win World War Two”.

(For those desiring to know more, the full schedule of TCM’s “Never Surrender: WWII in the Movies” can be found here: https://i.cdn.turner.com/v5cache/TCM/2019/WWII/TCM-WWII-2019-Schedule.pdf.)

Tonight’s’ focus is Prisoner of War (POW) movies; and the line-up includes two classics: The Great Escape and The Bridge on the River Kwai.

The first of these, The Great Escape, is a star-studded 1963 rendition of Paul Brickhill’s famous 1950 book of the same name.

Based on an actual event, the movie recounts an audacious 1943 Allied POW plan to dig three tunnels and undertake a simultaneous mass break out of 250 men from German POW camp Stalag Luft III, so as to draw thousands of German armed forces away from the front lines in order to search for the fugitive Allied POWs.

In the end, however, only 76 Allied prisoners actually get away; and most all are eventually rounded up. In a particularly tragic scene, 50 are executed by machine gunfire on the explicit orders of the Nazi high command.

The second movie, The Bridge on the River Kwai, was made six years earlier in 1957. This one was based on a 1952 novel by Pierre Boulle (who was later to write his more famous novel, Planet of the Apes). The film uses the historical setting of the construction of the Burma Railway in 1942-1943, and recounts how a small group of commandos are sent in to destroy a railroad bridge over the Kwai River that has been built by forced labor of Allied prisoners.

I confess that I already own digital copies of both of these movies; and that I know them virtually line by line! But that does not prevent me from tuning in one more time whenever I happen to come across them on television.

Of course, the plot of both movies is dependent upon the successful escape of one or more prisoners from internment. In the former, so as to recount what happened to the wider world; and in the latter, to be recruited to become part of the commando squad that returns to attack the bridge.

In reality, in regard to the total number of United States military personnel imprisoned during the war (93,941 in Europe and 27,465 in the Pacific), only a very, very small number actually managed to succeed in escaping imprisonment and making their way back to friendly lines. Most endured years of privation and barbarity at the hands of their captors.

In fact, the vast majority who survived imprisonment were only freed by liberation. In some case, this was by designated raids undertaken for that very purpose, as in the January 1945 raid on Cabanatuan in the Philippines that freed nearly 500 U.S. prisoners.

More often than not, though, throughout the spring and summer of 1945, advancing Allied troops simply came upon and liberated Allied POWs who were being held by the retreating German and Japanese armies.

Ironically, on another channel, two episodes of Hogan’ Heroes are being broadcast concurrent with these movies. A product of the 1960s, when America had emerged victorious from World War Two and become a world superpower, this television comedy presents the Axis powers as bungling idiots outwitted by Allied POWs at every turn. Yet, nothing could be farther from the truth.

As more realistic depictions of the Second World War emerged from Hollywood over the years, we have been reminded of just how fiercely contested this struggle was. TCM is right to stress that they are honoring “the courage and sacrifice that was required to win World War Two”.

Of course, the preacher in me cannot help but see the parallel to our human condition. In our great struggle against evil, we have been taken captive by the evil one – Satan. And no attempt on our part to escape his clutches has ever proven successful. But praise God, we were not forgotten. In the fullness of time, we were liberated by an infinitely more powerful combatant – the Son of God, Jesus Christ.

As the Bible says (in the New Testament Book of Galatians, chapter 4, verses 4-5, CEV), “When the time was right, God sent his Son … so he could set us free!”

To Him, and Him alone, therefore, do we owe our ultimate freedom! Thus, while I certainly join TCM in celebrating “the courage and sacrifice that was required to win World War Two” and give us earthly freedom, I rejoice even more in the same qualities that enabled the Son of God to fight His way to victory at Calvary and guarantee my eternal freedom in the process. For in the words of Jesus Christ Himself, “If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed!”

SOURCES:

A Google search will provide numerous sites dealing with WW2 POWs and their exploits.

See, for instance:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mass_escapes_from_German_POW_camps;

https://guestsofthethirdreich.org/home/;

https://worldwar2.org.uk/prisoners-of-war;

http://ww2today.com/16-april-1945-the-first-pow-camp-liberated-fallingbostel;

http://www.mansell.com/pow_resources/liberation_photos.html.

NOTE: The actors who played the four major German roles in “Hogan’s Heroes” - Werner Klemperer (Luftwaffe Colonel Klink), John Banner (Luftwaffe Sergeant Schultz), Leon Askin (Luftwaffe General Burkhalter), and Howard Caine (Gestapo Major Hochstetter) - were all Jewish. Of these, Klemperer, Banner, and Askin, along with Robert Clary (who portrayed Allied prisoner, Corporal LeBeau), were all individuals who actually spent time in internment camps in Nazi Germany before escaping to America!

(Cf.: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hogan's_Heroes.)

SCRIPTURE SOURCES:

https://biblehub.com/cev/galatians/4.htm;

https://biblehub.com/john/8-36.htm.

LASTLY:

Mark Felton has written a wonderful book recounting a similar mass escape undertaken a year before in 1942 by Allied POWs from another camp known as Oflag VI-B. Cf.: Mark Felton, Zero Night: The Untold Story of World War Two's Greatest Escape (New York: Thomas Dunne Books, 2014).

For an equally riveting first hand account of an escaping Allied POW in the Pacific, check out the following book: Damon L. Gause, The War Journal of Major Damon "Rocky" Gause: The Firsthand Account of the One of the Greatest Escapes of World War II (New York: Hyperion Press, 1999). "Rocky" Gause escaped from the Philippines to Australia in 1942. His journal was found years later by his then grown son in a chest in the attic and eventually published.

THINK TWICE!

6/17/2019

I have written before of my love for John Wayne. A Hollywood icon and top box office draw for five decades, “The Duke”, as he was affectionately known, is primarily remembered for his war movies and westerns. Despite this, he is officially accredited with 178 total acting roles in a variety of genres over his lengthy career, which lasted from 1926 until his death in 1977.

In fact, only Clark Gable sold more tickets at theaters than did John Wayne. Given his immense popularity with fans, it may be somewhat surprising then that Wayne was only awarded one Academy Award. That came in one of my personal all-time favorite movies – 1969’s “True Grit”.

In this first Hollywood treatment of Charles Portis’ runaway bestseller of the same name, Wayne portrayed the one-eyed Federal Marshal, “Rooster Cogburn”, against Kim Darby’s “Mattie Ross” and Glen Campbell’s Texas Ranger, “LeBoeuf”. (A second adaptation was produced by the Coen brothers in 2010.)

I still remember the night my parents first took my sister and me to see this movie when it was first released. As a child, I had always held John Wayne in high regard. But seeing him get the bad guys, save the day, and rescue the damsel in distress cemented him forever in my mind as the quintessential American hero!

(Of course, these days, I am older and a bit wiser. I now understand that leading men always save the day by besting the bad guys and rescuing the girl! But when one is eight years old, he understandingly lacks the benefit of such insights.)

In any event, if you are familiar with the plot, you will likely know that Marshall Cogburn didn’t do all these things by himself. He had a little help – from both young “Mattie Ross” and the Texas Ranger “LeBoeuf”. In the climactic scene where Mattie has fallen backward into the pit full of rattlesnakes after having shot Tom Cheney (the bad guy) with her father’s “Colt’s Dragoon”, Marshal Cogburn descends by rope to rescue her.

Unable to carry her up out of the pit, he finds that he is nonetheless pulled up and out with her on his shoulder by the mortally wounded LeBoeuf. Shortly thereafter, as “Mattie” and “Marshal Cogburn” kneel over the deceased Texas Ranger, John Wayne, in his role as “Marshal Cogburn”, makes the following statement: “Texican! He saved my neck twice. Once when he was dead!”

As I reflect on these words, I am reminded of the story found in the eighth chapter of the New Testament Gospel of John, where the scribes and Pharisees bring a woman caught in adultery to Jesus. In an attempt to trap Him, they inquire as to whether or not they should stone her according to the Law of Moses. Jesus, of course, knows their hearts, and challenges them accordingly: “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to cast a stone at her.”

Thereafter, one by one, her speechless accusers began to depart. In the process, Jesus literally saved her life! John's Gospel goes on to record that, a couple of years later, this same Jesus gave His own life on an old rugged cross for the sins of all men and women. In so doing, He saved this particular woman’s life twice – once when He was dead!

The first time around, He saved her life physically. The second time around, He saved her life spiritually! And this second time, in the spiritual sense, He did so by giving His own life in the process!

Of course, what He did for this woman He also did for you and me. I trust you realize this. I trust you also take the time to acknowledge this! For this Judean, this Bethlehem-born Nazorean, has truly saved our lives – and He did so once and for all – when He was dead! And by his death, we are made alive, both for this world and for the world to come!

MOVIE QUOTE: https://www.quotes.net/mquote/99431.

SCRIPTURE SOURCE: https://biblehub.com/bsb/john/8.htm.

ANSWERED PRAYERS!

6/13/2019

I love the story about the community that found itself in need of rain. The drought they were experiencing had continued for what seemed an eternity, and the small community of farmers was in a quandary as to what to do. Rain was important to keep their crops healthy and sustain the townspeople's way of life.

As the problem became more acute, a local pastor called a prayer meeting to ask for rain. Many people arrived at the church to pray for the needed rain. The pastor greeted most of them as they filed in.

As he walked to the front of the church to officially begin the meeting he noticed most people were chatting across the aisles and socializing with friends. When he reached the front his thoughts were on quieting the attendees and starting the meeting.

His eyes scanned the crowd as he asked for quiet. He noticed an eleven year-old girl sitting quietly in the front row. Her face was beaming with excitement. Next to her, open and ready for use, was a very colorful and extremely large umbrella, much bigger than her in fact.

The little girl's beauty and innocence made the pastor smile as he realized how much faith she possessed. No one else in the congregation had brought an umbrella. All had come to pray for rain. But the little girl alone had come expecting God to answer!

In the New Testament, the Apostle James cautions us about approaching prayer half-heartedly. In his General Epistle (chapter 4, verses 2-3), he writes: “Ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss…”

Perhaps James is reminding us that prayer is the ability to have a personal conversation with the God of the universe; and we should not only take advantage of the opportunity to do so, but also undertake to do it with intentionality and conviction.

After all, prayer is communicating with God. This means that prayer is not just talking to God or asking for things. Prayer is also listening for answers and expecting them to be provided!

STORY SOURCE: Available widely on the internet. See, for instance: https://www.atimetolaugh.org/umbrella.html.

SCRIPTURE SOURCE: https://biblehub.com/kjv/james/4.htm.

“D PLUS 3”

6/9/2019

In my last blog, which was written on the seventy-fifth anniversary of D-Day, I wrote about the fact that it was one of many such invasions in World War Two – albeit it was by far and away the largest and most involved. I referenced the fact that the letter D always signified the given day of an invasion and H signified the hour. For this reason, the timetable for operation Overlord for was measured in hours and days from the moment of invasion - which began with paratroopers capturing Pegasus Bridge at 00.16 (12:16 am) on 6 June, 1944.

I share this because, while the first several hours of D-Day were critical for gaining a foothold on the beaches, the battle was far from over afterwards. Once the troops were ashore, they then had to fight through the hedgerow country in order to then capture key objectives, including enemy strongholds, railway lines, highways, and above all, Cherbourg, with its permanent deep-water port on the Carentan peninsula, in order to supplant the temporary portable one made possible by the artificial “mulberries” floated over from England.

As I pen this blog post, it is June 9, 2019. Seventy-five years ago, today would have been “D Plus 3”. I thought it fitting to post a short piece shared with me by a lady in the church whose uncle went ashore in the second wave at Normandy, and then fought until he was later wounded on this date in 1944. The following piece, written for his family, is used with permission. I post it here in honor of the unparalleled bravery and sacrificial spirit shown by a whole generation of men just like this man, William H. Tilley, Jr.

MY EXPERIENCES THROUGH THE WORLD WAR II YEARS
By William H. Tilley, Jr. Jan. 22, 2007

When I was 18 years of age, I volunteered to go the Army. I was inducted at Fort McPherson in Atlanta, Ga on June 17, 1943 and after a few days I was sent to Camp Fannin, Texas, near Tyler. After about six weeks of basic infantry training I was turned loose to go home for ten days then I was to report to Fort Meade, MD where I was assigned to Co. A, 115th Infantry, 29th Division. After a few days there we were shipped to Camp Shanks, NJ. to get ready to go to England.

In Jan. 1944 we loaded on a small Ferry Boat and went down the Hudson River past the Statue of Liberty and loaded on a small ship bound for Liverpool, England. It took us fourteen days to go across, the Sea was rough and I thought at times the ship was going to turn upside down. I had to stand guard on deck one night and it was cold, dark and wet. when we arrived at Liverpool a train was waiting to take us to Plymouth, England and this is where we stayed until a few days before D-day. (I can't remember the name of the camp near Plymouth) While we were at Plymouth we spent about three or four days a week in the Moor.

A few days before D-Day we were moved to another camp and were told what our mission would be. We were assigned to Omaha Beach in Normandy. We were told to the best information they could get was that we should meet with little resistance and be able to move inland very quickly. After a few days we were loaded on an LCI waiting for orders to go. June 5th. was set for the invasion date but the weather was so bad and the Channel was real rough they postponed it until the next day, June 6, 1944, a date we will never forget.

Sometime during the night our ship got underway headed for the coast of France and to join all the hundreds of ships that were also on the way for the largest military operation in history. The Channel was still rough and I was sea sick but we arrived near the coast of France that morning. The first wave of troops landing on Omaha Beach at around 8:00 AM. were from the U.S. 29th. Division, 116th Infantry Regiment and the U.S. 1st. Division 16th Infantry Regiment. I think it was about 8:30 am when we were told to get off of the boat and join the invasion.

The water was up to my neck and I was loaded down with ammunition but I made it to the beach. Machine gun and rifle fire was spraying the beach along with artillery and mortar fire. Just as I reached the edge of the water I laid down to get an idea of where I should go next. I took the plastic wrap off of my rifle and about that time a big wave came in and an artillery shell came in and landed near my feet at the same time dumping water and sand all over me and jamming my rifle but I am sure the wave saved my life. I decided the quicker I could get off of the beach the better off I would be.

I saw a sea wall out some distance and I decided to make a run for it but when I got there I didn't get to stay long, an (unknown officer) officer said "let’s go men" so we started inland through a mine field. The engineers had marked a trail with white string so we would not step on a mine. A big percent of the first wave were killed, wounded or washed away by the high tide. Many of them were still lying on the beach when the 115th Infantry took over the mission.

When we reached the top of the hill we were going down a dirt road and the soldier in front of me raised his hand and that meant for everyone to stop. I laid down in a shallow ditch beside the road and about that time a German machine gun opened up on me just missing my head, I don't think he could see me but he knew I was there. He kept me pinned down for a few minutes then he threw a hand grenade and it landed within my reach but it rolled into shallow hole made by a wagon in the mud. The grenade went off but by being in the hole it did not hit me. We met with heavy resistance because the 352nd German infantry Division had just moved into the area.

Moving on, I came upon our Battalion Commander, Col. Blatt, he bad several men gathered close to him and when he saw me he motioned for me to come there. I hesitated for a few seconds and he motioned again. I got up and started toward him and just before I got there, an artillery shell hit in the middle of them. I bad seen wounded and dead all day and seeing Col. Blatt and the soldiers with him blown up was hard for me to take.

It was getting late so we spent the rest of the day getting organized. We could see what was going on down on the beach. Bulldozers building a road and heavy equipment coming off of the ships and artillery shells coming in on them at the same time. The battle ships were still out there firing over our heads. When they fired those guns it felt like someone hit me in the chest with their fist. There was not much sleep that night but I did find a ditch to lay down in and get some rest after I cleaned the sand out of my rifle.

The next morning we started moving around clearing hedgerows of snipers and moving inland at the same time. We moved around all day and into the night. Finally we stopped for a while and about daylight we were on the move again. The main part of the German Division had moved inland but they left some snipers behind. We were still working our way through the hedgerows and that afternoon we went into an open field and stopped for a break. I saw a small branch near so I went to get some water, and while I was filling my canteen a sniper took a shot at me just missed my hand holding the canteen.

We went on from there and late that afternoon we moved into a village and started digging in for the night. I had just finished digging my fox hole when a Sgt. came to me and asked me to go with them to find a lost squad, so we went off down this road for several hundred yards and the Sgt. told me to jump over the hedgerow and see if I could see anyone. I jumped over and it was so deep on the other side I could not get back up, so I walked back to an opening in the hedgerow and got back on the road and everyone was gone. It was not a good feeling to be in a combat zone all alone. I had an idea which way they went but I decided rather than trying to find them it would be better to go back to my foxhole. I went back to my foxhole but I was scared, I knew the Germans had snipers in the area.

The next morning we bad caught up with the Germans they were just outside the village where we stayed that night They were dug in and we were laying artillery in on them and after while the artillery stopped and we attacked. We got about half way to their location and we could not get across the Aure River so we had to pull back and when we pulled back the Germans made a counter attack. My platoon Sgt. told me and another boy to stay there and hold them up as long as we could while the rest of the men went back over the hill and dig in.

I was laying on a hedgerow firing my rifle when an artillery shell landed just on the other side of the hedgerow about eight feet from me. A piece of shrapnel hit me in the right eye temporarily blinding me and the boy that was with me left me there and I don't know where he went. I do know that he was not hit by that shell. All of the other men in my unit had gone back across the hill but I could hear a rifle firing down the hedgerow about two hundred feet so I followed that sound.

An officer stopped me and gave me first aid and told two of his men to take me behind the lines and get some transportation to take me to a first aid station. A sniper fired at us one ti.me while we were going back and got pretty close. They put me on a litter and across the back of a jeep and took me to a first aid station. They started giving me morphine and got me ready to go out to the hospital ship just off the beach. That night the Germans came over and dropped two bombs on the ship but it did not sink. The next morning we arrived in England and I went through two more hospitals before I got to the one that could treat me.

While I was in this hospital they removed the shrapnel and a few days later the Doctor came to my bed and told me the eye was infected and it would be necessary to remove it. He said it would not be necessary to put me to sleep, the only time it would hurt would be when he cut the main optic nerve AND HE WAS RIGHT ABOUT THAT. The next thing they started making me a prosthetic eye out of plastic.

I was in that hospital for about two months and when I started to leave I asked the Dr. why he would not put me to sleep to remove the eye and he told me I was shell shocked and I would not have woken up.

Now I'm on my way again to a replacement depot for a few weeks and then back to France. I was in limited service since I bad lost the right eye so they kept me back behind the lines. I had been having bad headaches so I went on sick call and the Dr. ask me how I got back to France and I told him I could not get my name removed from the shipping list. He immediately put me on the list to fly back to England and go back in the hospital. They diagnosed my trouble there as sinus. They transferred me out of the 29th Infantry Division and put me in Detachment Headquarters of the 188th General Hospital as a Clerk Typist at Cirencester England. I was there at the end of the war in Europe.

On June 6, 1945, one year after D-Day, I was sent to London from Cirencester England for two days to be interviewed on a British Broadcasting Corporation program called "Salute to Service Men". This program was "spotlighted" to Station WSB, Atlanta, Ga and was heard by my parents and family and others in Blue Ridge and surrounding areas. They had been notified the time the program would come on. BBC gave me a written copy of the interview and also a recording of.

Awards I received:

Combat Infantry Badge
Bronze Arrowhead Bronze Star
2 Campaign Stars
Purple Heart
EAMET Service Medal*
World War II Victory Medal

In his New Testament Letter to the Romans (chapter 13, verse 7), the Apostle Paul states: “Pay to all what is owed to them … respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.” Along with a whole generation of brave men and women who so willingly gave of themselves, Mr. Tilley deserves both our respect and our honor.

Jesus Christ, Who also fought a battle and came out on “D Plus 3” victorious, once told us there is no greater love that any individual can show for others than the willingness to lay down his or her life for them. Just like Jesus, Mr. Tilley was willing, if called upon, to do just that. And along with a great many others, I will never forget what he did for me and my freedom!

REMEMBRANCE SOURCE: A paper document shared with me personally by Ms. Sherwood.

SCRIPTURE SOURCES: https://www.biblehub.com/romans/13-7.htm;
https://biblehub.com/john/15-13.htm.

NOTE: *"EAMET" stands for "European-Africa-Middle Eastern".

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