“Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”
Ephesians 6:13
There are defining moments in every person’s life when a man or woman must choose what is true and stand on that truth. D-Day was such a day.
Our Lord Jesus Christ said “In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 It is only in our trials and struggles, the dark night of the soul, that character is forged. Faith is unproven until courage manifests in action.
In the early hours of June 6, 1944, the young men of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, and other Allied nations amassed on the cold, swollen waters off the coast of Normandy under grim, gray, dawn skies. Buried within the greenery of the chalky cliffs were concrete bunkers and German artillery guns wrapped in barbed wire. These young men, some as young as 18, 19 and 20 years of age, faced destiny on that cold dawn morning of June 6. Many were just becoming men, yet each decided that freedom was worth living and dying for.
For 4 long years, the Germans had occupied France and other European nations, while Great Britain endured bombing raids. The concentration camps of Aushwitz, Buchenwald and many others were belching out gray smoke night and day. Evil and despair were the daily companions of those who lived under the shadow of Nazi tyranny. The choice was clear: courage and faith for freedom or apathy and tyranny. The men of D-Day displayed courage and faith by their actions. As the 255 men of the American Rangers first scaled the rocky cliffs of Pointe du Hoc with rope ladders, each were met with a barrage of gunfire and grenades. When one fell, another would rise. And so forth, until these men of courage and others regained the continent of Europe from the jaws of tyranny. Evil was met with goodness, courage and righteousness. Liberty came at the price of blood.
Life without freedom is a dark prison, and the young men of D-Day chose eternal freedom over fear. It was not about them – it was about destiny. Doing the right thing for the right reason. The evil of Nazism had no place in the world and it was up to good men to reclaim that which was lost.
These young men, our heroes of D-Day, chose to believe God and His promises. They chose freedom and life for others, just as our Savior chose to extend freedom to those who believe in Him and the promise of eternal life by sacrificing Himself on a cross.
President Ronald Reagan in his compelling speech honoring the heroes at Pointe Du Hoc on the Fortieth Anniversary of D-Day said, “Strengthened by their courage, heartened by their valor, and borne by their memory, let us continue to stand for the ideals for which they lived and died.”
Each of us will face an evil day in our life. Let us resolve to be courageous like the young men were on the cold wind swept cliffs of northern France and live our lives that others may one day say – that man or that woman stood for what is right and true.
God bless America and the freedom she defends.
Our Lord Jesus Christ said “In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 It is only in our trials and struggles, the dark night of the soul, that character is forged. Faith is unproven until courage manifests in action.
In the early hours of June 6, 1944, the young men of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, and other Allied nations amassed on the cold, swollen waters off the coast of Normandy under grim, gray, dawn skies. Buried within the greenery of the chalky cliffs were concrete bunkers and German artillery guns wrapped in barbed wire. These young men, some as young as 18, 19 and 20 years of age, faced destiny on that cold dawn morning of June 6. Many were just becoming men, yet each decided that freedom was worth living and dying for.
For 4 long years, the Germans had occupied France and other European nations, while Great Britain endured bombing raids. The concentration camps of Aushwitz, Buchenwald and many others were belching out gray smoke night and day. Evil and despair were the daily companions of those who lived under the shadow of Nazi tyranny. The choice was clear: courage and faith for freedom or apathy and tyranny. The men of D-Day displayed courage and faith by their actions. As the 255 men of the American Rangers first scaled the rocky cliffs of Pointe du Hoc with rope ladders, each were met with a barrage of gunfire and grenades. When one fell, another would rise. And so forth, until these men of courage and others regained the continent of Europe from the jaws of tyranny. Evil was met with goodness, courage and righteousness. Liberty came at the price of blood.
Life without freedom is a dark prison, and the young men of D-Day chose eternal freedom over fear. It was not about them – it was about destiny. Doing the right thing for the right reason. The evil of Nazism had no place in the world and it was up to good men to reclaim that which was lost.
These young men, our heroes of D-Day, chose to believe God and His promises. They chose freedom and life for others, just as our Savior chose to extend freedom to those who believe in Him and the promise of eternal life by sacrificing Himself on a cross.
President Ronald Reagan in his compelling speech honoring the heroes at Pointe Du Hoc on the Fortieth Anniversary of D-Day said, “Strengthened by their courage, heartened by their valor, and borne by their memory, let us continue to stand for the ideals for which they lived and died.”
Each of us will face an evil day in our life. Let us resolve to be courageous like the young men were on the cold wind swept cliffs of northern France and live our lives that others may one day say – that man or that woman stood for what is right and true.
God bless America and the freedom she defends.