History is a powerful witness to the sovereignty of God, His Faithfulness and Glory. America, as One Nation still Under God are called to have this Gideon sized, depth and breadth of faith to be more than conquerors and take back our nation. Right now, today, America is at a critical cross-roads and all of us who call America home and honor all that our grand, free country represents need to make a choice today for the kind of future we desire for all who come after us.
These times are not business as usual. In fact, the current environment is like nothing this country has ever experienced before But, we are Americans and I have great faith in the American spirit that with almighty God’s wisdom and strength we will emerge from these times.
I came across this post at an interesting blog recently that seemed relevant and appropriate, Enjoy.
Are You Afraid Of Numbers?
Article posted on 26 07 2009 http://runnerforchrist.wordpress.com
“The world will know that free men stood against a tyrant, that few stood against many, and before this battle was over, even a god-king can bleed.” -King Leonidas
Were you able to watch the movie, “300?” If in case you’ve failed to watch it, let me give you a brief summary of what the movie was all about, and mind you, it was based on a true story:
In 480 BC, desperate to halt the advance of the Persian empire into Greece, 300 Spartans (along with another couple thousand Greeks who are generally forgotten about) rushed to the mountain pass of Thermopylae.
There they met the immense Persian army head on—no one knows for sure how big of an army it was, but even modern, conservative estimates suggest that it was at least 200,000 men, or a ratio of 100 Persians to every Greek.
This was possible because the Spartans were amazing warriors. From childhood, Spartan males were trained and hardened, and by adulthood, they were the world’s best fighting machines. The Spartans also employed good strategy in the battle, occupying the narrow pass of Thermopylae where the massive Persian army couldn’t overwhelm them all at once.
King Leonidas of Sparta and his men held the pass for three days against overwhelming numerical odds, but were eventually defeated when the Persians discovered a mountain path that led behind Greek lines.
Ultimately, the battle was a success—the Spartans’ three-day stand delayed the advance of the Persian army and afforded Athens the time it needed to prepare for the decisive naval battle which would end up determining the outcome of the war—but every Spartan was killed.
What was so thrilling about this movie was when Xerxes, the fearsome ruler at that time said these words to King Leonidas…
Xerxes said, “There will be no glory in your sacrifice. I will erase even the memory of Sparta from the histories! Every piece of Greek parchment shall be burned. Every Greek historian, and every scribe shall have their eyes pulled out, and their tongues cut from their mouths. Why, uttering the very name of Sparta, or Leonidas, will be punishable by death! The world will never know you existed at all!”
And King Leonidas answered him, “The world will know that free men stood against a tyrant, that few stood against many, and before this battle was over, even a god-king can bleed. “
The Battle of Thermopylae is one of the most famous military engagements in history.
Some 700 years prior to the Battle of Thermopylae, during the Old Testament period of the Judges, God appeared to a man named Gideon and told him to defeat the Midianites who had been oppressing Israel for seven years;
There would be some similarities between this battle and the Battle of Thermopylae. Like the Persians, the Midianites had a vast army—as numerous as the sand on the seashore (Judges 7.12). On the other hand, the Israelite army was tiny, as God had Gideon trim it down from an original size of 32,000 to just 300.
Although the Israelite army was outnumbered like the Spartan army would be hundreds of years later, the similarities pretty much stopped there. The Israelites weren’t the world’s best soldiers—they were mainly farmers, and it seems possible that many of them had never fought before at all. Furthermore, their battle plan seemed to be lacking, as they entered into battle armed with only trumpets and torches.
But most different of all was the outcome of the battle. There was no way the Israelites should have won, but they did. The Bible says that when the Israelites blew their trumpets, God caused confusion in the Midianite camp, and they panicked and turned on each other. Israel left the battlefield victorious.
In the Battle of Thermopylae, Sparta, the world’s best warriors, against great odds managed an amazing accomplishment, but they ended up losing the battle and every man was killed in the process. Meanwhile Gideon and his ragtag army defeated the Midianites with ease. Why the different results?
What is my point here? Don’t be afraid if you’re alone with your battle or if you have limited resources only. If God is with you, who can be against you? Remember the ratio 1:100 or 1 vs 100, and yet they’ve came out victorious.
Another lessons to be learned by comparing these two stories is that human ability can lead to amazing achievement, but ultimately, it falls short.
Isaiah 40.28-31 is one of my favorite Old Testament passages:
“Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The Everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth
Does not become weary or tired.
His understanding is inscrutable.
He gives strength to the weary,
And to him who lacks might He increases power.
Though youths grow weary and tired,
And vigorous young men stumble badly,
Yet those who wait for the LORD
Will gain new strength;
They will mount up with wings like eagles,
They will run and not get tired,
They will walk and not become weary.”
When times get tough, where do you turn? Do you rely on your own strength and abilities? On other people? Sooner or later, all of those things will fail you. But if God is the source of your strength, you’ll never run out.
God be Praised! – Article posted on http://runnerforchrist.wordpress.com
Stay Informed, Be Inspired and Get Involved. And always remember, The Truth Shall Keep America Free.
Jim Schubert, The Core Report
