A Day Worthy of Remembrance and Appreciation

Veterans’ Day always reminds me of my father. He served in the U.S. Army for more than 22 years and saw combat in Europe and Northern Africa during World War II in both infantry and armored divisions. This included the famed Battle of the Bulge, fighting against German forces. His service earned him the Bronze Star for meritorious service, along with two Purple Hearts for wounds suffered during battle.

 

The old John Wayne war movies depicted memorable experiences and wartime camaraderie, but my father never talked about the war. The memories were too painful. I do remember the nights he would wake up screaming from nightmares of his times in battle. That was long before anyone talked about Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Residual effects from war back then were known as “battle fatigue.”

 

My father.

Dad’s the reason I was born in Germany. He was stationed there after the war; my mom had gone to be with him – and I wanted to be close to her at the time. After a year we all returned to the States, so I didn’t have time to learn to speak German or meet any ‘frauleins.’ Among my dad’s many post-war assignments was to serve as an interpreter in interviewing Hungarian refugees, since he was proficient in speaking Hungarian, and received commendations for his skill. He retired with distinction.

Unlike my dad, I never served in the military. I used to joke that he had spent enough time in the Army for us both. When the Vietnam War was at its peak I was in college, which exempted me from the draft. And my father never urged me to enlist in military service. But I’ve always had great appreciation for those who did serve and believe Veterans’ Day is a well-deserved day of remembrance.

 

The battlefields on which American soldiers and sailors served are too numerous to mention. However, whenever there’s a protest of some sort, in a sense it’s a tribute to the many men and women that served nobly and courageously to defend our many freedoms, including the rights of free speech and assembly. 

 

Through the centuries, there have been many debates over how engaged Christians should be in matters of war. The realities and evils of war are well-documented in the Bible’s Old Testament. But if we believe the Scriptures there’s no doubt that we all should be participants in a different kind of war – one that’s spiritual in nature.

 

Ephesians 6:10-18 describes “the full armor of God,” which includes “the belt of truth…breastplate of righteousness…feet fitted with the gospel of peace…shield of faith…helmet of salvation…sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” and prayer. Indeed, like it or not, we're in spiritual war, with the minds, hearts and souls of men, women and children at risk.

 

We find more details in 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 which says, “For though we live in the flesh, we do not wage war according to the flesh. The weapons of our warfare are not the weapons of the flesh. Instead, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every presumption set up against the knowledge of God; and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” 

 

Every day we see, hear about and even encounter evil in many forms. As 1 Peter 5:8 tells us, “Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” Successfully opposing such evil can’t be accomplished through philosophy, psychology or positive thinking. It requires divine power and utilizing the protective armor of God has provided for us through His Spirit.

 

I recall many years ago singing “Onward Christian Soldiers” in church. “Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war. With the cross of Jesus going on before….” This hymn has fallen out of favor in recent decades, with many arguing it’s too militant. That, however, doesn’t negate the fact that God does call us to be Christian soldiers, warring against the evil forces and growing darkness in our world.

 

The apostle Paul exhorted his protégé Timothy, “Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 2:3).  He also instructed him – and us – to “Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made the good confession before many witnesses” (1 Timothy 6:12).

On this Veterans’ Day we remember the faithful service of those who engaged human enemies both overseas and on American soil. But we also must never forget the ongoing spiritual war in which we’re all unavoidably enlisted, one that won’t end until Jesus Christ makes His promised return.