The beaten trails don’t teach you nothin’. Ride open country with yore eyes propped apart. Yuh may never be no world beater, but if yuh learn to read the good Lord’s signs yuh won’t never be a fool.”
–Ernest Haycox (Chaffee of Roaring Horse)
“Meditate on these things; give yourself entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all.”
–1 Timothy 3:15 (NKJV)
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How true it is that most people will not be a “world beater.” Few will make it to the rank of leadership, or fame and fortune, and yet so many think that is what they are called to do. “Get a dream and follow it,” clamors the voice and people heed it. Most then sit by and watch for that dream to be fulfilled. Instead they should be out, making a living and looking for the “good Lord’s signs” as they pass through this life. I would ask the question: What is it that the Lord wants you to do?
One of the saddest things that I see in life is a person in their 30s or older still trying to live like a child. They have developed a Peter Pan syndrome and want to live in Never, Never Land instead of where they are placed and do the duties they are called to do. This is not only true of the physical man, but also the spiritual. It is a pitiful sight to see a Christian who, supposedly has been one for 30 years and they still act like they are new-born.
The New Testament calls us to maturity. It tells us to grow up and quite whining and acting like the world. It tells us to put away the former things and quit playing around. We usually think of 1 Corinthians 13 as the “love chapter” of the Bible. That is true, but there is also some strong admonishment for us to grow up. Paul writes, “When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” (1 Corinthians 13:11, NKJV) This should be true physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually.
Very few Christians actually meditate on the Word. They was to remain in a garden of beauty where the fragrance of the flowers is rich and the grass is soft and green. Hmmm, remember, it was in a garden where Eve and Adam succumbed the destroyer of their souls. Start to grow, get in the Word and live it. Our progress should be evident to those around us.
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Yesterday we remembered what is known as D-Day. However, often forgotten are the other “D-Days” in World War II. The one that took place in France in 1944 is remembered because it stopped the German advance and from that point on the Nazis were slowly pushed back into Germany, and in May 1945, Germany surrendered.
I had in my history library a book by Joe Alexander that spoke of the D-Days in the Pacific: Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Saipan, Peleliu, Leyte, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa, plus a host of others. My Dad was part of the invasion force at Palawan. Also don’t forget the invasion of North Africa, Sicily, and Anzio. The Battle of Tarawa was the most costly per day–247.5 Americans died per day during that invasion; it was truly “Bloody Tarawa”. Thankfully it was over in four days. The next costliest per day was Iwo Jima with 194.9 per day. The most costly in Europe was the Battle of the Bulge–470 per day. Sacrifice–Honor–Valor!
That is not to take anything away from Normandy. It was a spectacular event. The planning, the supplying, the execution, and the results were enormous to say the least. So much is owed to those who gave of their lives in one way or another to rid the world of the fascist menace.