Who Should You Believe?

 

November, 2001

Dear Friend of our Ministry,

There is nothing new under the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:9). The events in our nation may be new to many under the age of 60, but we have been through everything before that has recently happened. We have had attacks on American soil before. In the war of 1812-14, the British eventually lost the conflict, but they managed to set fire to the White House and Capitol in an attempt to spite us. A mysterious rain storm suddenly occurred and put out the fires before they had done too much damage.

There was another attack from a foreign enemy right here on American soil in World War II. A Japanese submarine surfaced off the coast of California and used its deck gun to shell an oil refinery. I have seen an old newspaper photo of the damage done. The submarine's purpose was to instill terror and fear into the American people. For the same reason, the Japanese also released large balloons with bombs attached from ships in the Pacific when winds were blowing east toward the American coast. Some of these "balloon bombs" exploded in Oregon and Washington state, but fortunately resulted in no casualties.

And speaking of terror, during the attack on Britain, in 1943 the Germans began launching 9,250 of their V1 rockets, of which 2,500 reached London. In 1944, they began launching over 1,000 of their V2 rockets, of which more than 500 reached London. Over 20,000 British were killed, plus many more injured, but the residents learned to sleep in the bomb shelters and subways, keep a "stiff upper lip", and they persevered through the war.

We have also had a New York sky-scraper hit by an airplane before. On July 28, 1945, an American B-25 bomber crashed into the 78th and 79th floors of the Empire State Building at 200 mph. The pilot had become disoriented in the fog and thought he was over the New Jersey Airport. While damage to the structure was significant, the building remained standing. Fourteen people were killed and dozens more were injured.

In World War II, there were hundreds of young Japanese pilots who would gladly die for their "god" — the Emperor Hirohito. In fact, when selections of "kamikazes" were made, it has been written that some Japanese pilots would weep that they were passed over for this "honor" by their Emperor. In the Pacific, they would attack in waves of up to 100 or more at a time. My own father-in-law was in the Navy and helped load 5-inch guns on the USS St. Louis. During the battle for the Leyte Gulf of the Philippines, his ship was one of many that was hit by "the divine wind". Two kamikazes crashed into his ship, and 16 men were killed and 43 were injured. The dead were buried at sea, the ship was repaired, and they were back in the battle for Okinawa. Difficult times call for perseverance. "Bull" Halsey, the captain of the aircraft carrier that launched Doolittle's raiders over Tokyo, once said, "There is no such thing as heroes — only ordinary men who rise to meet extra-ordinary circumstances." God, help America have more men and women like this once again!

What should we do in the present circumstances in America? We need perseverance, and spiritual sensitivity to listen to the rare and unusual voices that have God-inspired wisdom for our lives and nation. These people are sometimes a bit "different", and what they say can seem unusual. One secular example was the WW1 Air Force pioneer, General Billy Mitchell, who foresaw the entire second world war with Japan. In fact, he stated publicly — years before it happened — that the Japanese would surprise attack Pearl Harbor early on a Sunday morning! Nobody listened to him. He was court-marshaled for "insubordination", but after WWII he was awarded a Congressional medal!

Billy Graham's daughter was being interviewed on TV on The Early Show and host Jane Clayson asked her, "How could God let something like this happen?" Anne Graham gave an insightful response. She said, "I believe that God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government, and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman that He is, I believe that He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone?"

As a nation, we can persevere through the current "minor" hardships we have recently experienced. Others have endured much more. But we must remain in faith, and we must continue doing the right things. We must support ministries that are "speaking the truth", and we must not let deception keep us from hearkening to those voices of truth. God is the answer for our nation, and if Americans can't see the need to repent — they're deceived!

As a nation, we need to spread teaching about God and His Word. We have a terrible "spiritual illiteracy rate" in America. The nation needs more repentance. Many people hardly know what sin is, much less how much God desires holiness and obedience in His people. There is a lot of spiritual work to do to get our nation back on the right course. I invite you to pray and help us as we labor to save & redeem this great land called America.

Proclaiming the Truth,

Dale & Judi Leander

 

 
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