mother’s sons once more.237
This is a great picture to keep in mind when dealing with other people. That other person, no matter how unattractive or unappreciative, is in fact some mother’s son or daughter. That person may have different problems or even values than our own, but in most cases started out just as we did. A mother and/or a father loved them and had high hopes for them. This is even truer of our heavenly Father, who created every human being and loves us all as his own children. He may not like what we are doing at any moment, but he nevertheless has provided for the salvation of every soul. When we deal with others, we need this perspective. Instead of focusing on the differences, we should see first our common bonds as children of God.
Did not he who made me in the womb make them? Did not the same one form us both within our mothers?
June 17
James Coyle spent his first night at the Italian front wrapped up in half a pup tent, trying to shield himself from a driving rain. The next morning he lined up with others at a chow truck for breakfast. When two German aircraft appeared and began strafing a nearby unit, everyone around Coyle scattered for shelter. He described what he did next:
I scooted and slid down to the chow truck, climbed up on it, and asked the cook, “Is it OK to get some coffee?” The cook said, “Take the whole d____ truck. I’m getting out of here!” I can’t tell you how delicious the pancakes smothered with blueberry and strawberry jam tasted as I sipped my coffee and watched the enemy planes.238
There is a well-known paraphrase of a famous Kipling poem,239 “If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs… maybe you don’t understand the situation!” Here we see a novice displaying a nonchalance foreign to the battle-hardened veterans around him.
As a new Christian I have frequently made the same mistake in my attitude toward evil. When something goes wrong in my life, I usually suspect my own weaknesses and failures, ignoring the fact that there is an enemy in the world who knows me and is seeking to undo my efforts. Victory over this powerful force is more than a matter of self-improvement and takes more than self-will. It takes complete reliance on the power of our Lord and Savior. Ignorance of the presence of evil is not bliss.
Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.
June 18
Ray Sadoski was not happy on the Anzio beachhead. The weather was cold and overcast, and the beach was a wide expanse of open ground, exposed to enemy observation. His officers ordered everyone to dig in for protection from incoming artillery, not sensing a more immediate danger:
We were set up just to the northeast of Anzio port. The Germans had pulled out so fast that they had left a 20mm Italian anti-aircraft gun sitting there. All our guys were horsing around, getting on the gun and the like. One of our communicators from the command post told me, “Go over to that Italian gun and get that phone wire that the Germans left behind, we can use it.” Well, instead of walking all the way out to the gun to unhook the wire, I just grabbed the wire and gave it a yank, and the whole d____ gun went up in a huge explosion. The Germans had rigged that thing to blow up if anybody broke the wire.240
Life is full of hidden dangers we don’t expect. We take precautions to ensure the safety and well-being of ourselves and families, but over time realize we can’t plan for every contingency. The stock market crashes, the other driver swerves, or the spouse misinterprets. Many events are simply beyond our control. When we accept this fact, we open ourselves to a great spiritual blessing. God waits for us to give him control of our lives. The sooner we rely on him, the sooner we will find true peace. When we seek his direction we have a chance to align ourselves with his purpose and the ultimate safety that only God can provide: a secure place in his family and his eternal kingdom.
Do not be anxious about anything… present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
June 19
One of the bloodiest battles of the Italian campaign was fought at the little town of Cisterna. The memory of it was a blur to Robert Appel. He knew that he was in the middle of “hell breaking out all around.”241 The air was a cacophony of eerie sounds from the metallic missiles that seemed to fill the air around him. He had some amazing observations about the experience:
I could actually hear the whirring and swishing sounds of shells whizzing by my ears. It was an unbelievable feeling to know you were literally walking through a labyrinth of metal that seemingly never presented you with an exit. It was a bewildering complexity, so real and so unreal for one to be caught up in and yet you knew the outcome would be one of three results. You would either be wounded, killed or with God’s protective armor plus sheer good luck, you could come through unscathed.242
This soldier was wounded during the battle, but, fortunately, survived to tell us this story. His analysis of possible outcomes accurately summarized what could happen to him physically at that time. It is interesting to note that the same outcomes are also possible in our daily spiritual struggles. Our weaknesses, the thoughtlessness of others, and the dedicated effort of the Enemy all seem zeroed in on slowing and stopping our progress toward God. Unless we are prepared, any of these pitfalls can hurt and even mortally wound us in our faith.
