No Compromise

In mid December, 1944, the US 101st Airborne Division arrived in the town of Bastogne, Luxemburg. Their mission was to stop the German advancement through Belgium. They were to hold Bastogne, to not allow the enemy to advance. The weather was miserable - it was terribly cold, there was a heavy blanket of snow, and there were no signs of relief. In addition, the troops were lacking cold weather gear. Then things went from bad to worse. They found themselves completely surrounded in this town by the German 5th Panzer Army, cut off from Allied forces. There they were, surrounded, out manned, out supplied, and out gunned. Due to the weather, air-dropped supplies and Allied forces were unable to reach them. The Germans were so assured of their impending victory that they offered the 101st an opportunity to surrender. Brigadier General McAullife, acting commander of the 101st Airborne, received the German's request for the 101st's surrender. His reply - "NUTS!"

You see, the general had absolutely NO INTENTION on COMPROMISING with the enemy on any grounds. The 101st Airborne stood ready to fight what seemed to be a loosing battle. I admire the strength, courage, and bravery these men had in the face of overwhelming odds.

Joyful are those who obey his laws

and search for him with all their hearts.

3 They do not compromise with evil,

and they walk only in his paths.

4 You have charged us

to keep your commandments carefully.

Psalm 119:2-4

General McAullife and the 101st faced a powerful enemy. But he and his men were soldiers. They followed orders. They did what they were commanded to do. They held their ground and they did not compromise. As believers, we also face a powerful enemy. We too must not compromise on our faith and our freedom in Christ. However, there are times that so many of us do. You see, the enemy isn't always so easily identifiable. There are not always clear lines drawn in the snow. There are no uniforms and markings that clearly identifies who is on which side. No, the enemy we face is cunning, diabolical, and cleverly disguises himself. Before we know it, he's behind our lines and we've compromised our position.

Mission Drift. It's how we believers can fall into the trap of compromise with the world. Hebrews 2:1 warns us of such, "So we must listen very carefully to the truth we have heard, or we may drift away from it." According to Dr. Charles Stanley, "Drifting begins subtly and usually includes compromising the principles found in God's Word. The movies you attend, the way you dress, the friends you associate with, or any number of other things could be a source of compromise." (Dr. Charles Stanley - INTO HIS PRESENCE ) It is so easy for us to drift away from God's Word and righteous living. It just takes us drifting away once to lay the groundwork for continued compromise - and sin. Once we compromise on one point, we are more easily suaded to compromise again. Once these start adding up, it doesn't take long for us to be up to our eyeballs in sin. Just one compromise, just one wrong choice, can have a snowball effect.

For me, the temptation to compromise seems to strike on days that I do not spend time with God like I should - time in prayer, reading His Word, seeking Him. When I compromise on my devotional time with Him, I am setting myself up for attack. The enemy knows this, too. Like a seasoned general, his attacks are timed for when I am weakest- when my spiritual TANK is running on empty. He knows when my supplies are down, when I have little or no ammunition to fight back. So I drift. I stray from God's Word. I compromise with the World. Mission drift sets in.

None of us are immune to mission drift. None of us are immune to compromising with the world. We all feel the temptations and the pressures of the world all around us. However, the choice is ours. In order to overcome mission drift, we must remain steadfast in our devotion to the LORD. We must seek after Him with our WHOLE HEARTS DAILY! We must "listen very carefully to the truth we have heard, or we may drift away from it."

So what happened to General McAullife and the 101st surrounded in Bastogne? A miracle happened. General George S Patton knew the only way American forces and air support could relieve the 101st in Bastogne was if the weather cleared. Since he had no control over the weather, he went straight to The ONE who did.

"Needing just one full day (24 hours) of good weather, Patton ordered the Third Army Chaplain, (COL) James O'Neill, to come up with a prayer beseeching God to grant this. The weather did clear soon after the prayer was recited, and Patton decorated O'Neill with the Bronze Star Medal. The Bronze Star Medal is a United States Armed Forces individual military decoration and is the fourth-highest award for bravery... on the spot." (AbsoluteAstronomy.com)

Now armed with good weather and air support, Patton turned the US Third Army from the front lines to relieve the embattled 101st Airborne at Bastogne. The logistics of turning his army around was considered a major feat, another miracle perhaps overlooked by or not known to many. The German 5th Panzer Army was defeated. The Battle of the Bulge was won! Now I don't know if General Patton was a Christian or not, that is not for me to decide. But he did know who to turn to when he needed victory!

Christ has the VICTORY. He has ALREADY defeated the enemy. In the eloquent words of Dr. Charles Stanley, "...Jesus gave up everything to come to earth and die in our place. We have eternal life because He took the principles of His Father seriously. By His grace, we are saved and set free from sin. Once realized, this should be enough to curb any notion of drifting. Anchor YOUR life to the Word of God and you will never drift."

AMEN!

In His Love, Cathy

To read the prayer written by Third Army Chaplain James O'Neill click on http://www.generalpatton.com/prayer.html