Some Post-Sabbatical Thoughts on War and Current Affairs

It is good to be back "in the saddle again."  Marlys and I have spent the last four weeks on the East Coast on my very first sabbatical.  We had rented a home in Fredericksburg, Virginia - a home that was a great fit for us.  The owners of the home were believers and we could sense the presence of God within.  I was able to get a lot of study completed and worked on the first twelve sermons in my new fall series on the Gospels - the story of the coming of that thread of redemption promised in the Old Testament.  In spite of the very hot and humid weather conditions, we got to experience many of the sites, sounds, and flavors of northern Virginia and southeastern Pennsylvania.   


We spent time visiting many of the historical sites in northern Virginia, including many Civil War battlefields.  One forgets that more blood was shed on Virginia soil during those four years than in any other state - Union or Confederate.  I spent part of one afternoon just walking the sunken road there in Fredericksburg and then climbing to the top of Marye's Heights.  It was here in December 1862 that Union General Ambrose Burnside ordered a charge up those slopes.  It was all open ground.  Poised within that sunken road were troops commanded by Robert E Lee and positioned on the top of Marye's Heights were artillery batteries.  I stood along that road - some of the original wall along the road still remains - and pictured myself as a Union soldier attempting to scale that hill.  It was a suicide mission.  As I walked along that road I wondered at those who had died that day.  Was I walking along a place where a soldier had fallen?  Someone's son or husband or father?  I have to admit it was a rather sobering moment for me.  And that was repeated as I walked for a short distance along "Bloody Lane" at Antietam - the bloodiest single day in the history of America; at the copse of trees at Gettysburg where Pickett's Charge was finally repelled by Union forces; and at the "bloody angle" on the fields of Spotsylvania.  These truly were America's "killing fields."  The war became more alive for me these past four weeks than at any other time I had visited Gettysburg alone.  The magnitude of the war was overwhelming.  The depth of the stories of heroism and courage was inspiring.  The immensity of the suffering gripped one's heart.  I stood looking into the room where General 'Stonewall" Jackson died and realized that he would never see his daughter grow up.  And then realized that story was repeated hundreds of thousands of times - and is still being repeated today by those serving in Iraq and Afghanistan and other regions where our armed forces serve so faithfully. 


While we were out East, the world continued its slide down the slippery-slope.  Israel was poised on the brink of another military invasion of the Gaza Strip following months of riots along the border, the death of an Israeli soldier killed by a Hamas militant, and the launching of both rockets and incendiary kites and balloons which have caused the scorching of hundreds of acres of Israeli farmland and orchards.  Egypt stepped in at the eleventh hour and brokered a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, a cease-fire that seems to be holding.  But, as we know from history, Hamas will use this time of cease-fire to rebuild their tunnels, restock their weapons and ammunition, and prepare for the next assault upon Israel. 


Meanwhile, at the United Nations it was business as usual - the condemnation of Israel for their inhumane treatment of the Palestinians, both within Gaza and the West Bank.  I am grateful for our ambassador to the United Nations, Nicki Haley, who has had the courage to stand up and call out the hypocrisy of the United Nations.  She reminded the General Assembly that the human rights abuses in Venezuela and Nicaragua go unnoticed and the human rights of those living in Iran are ignored.  The only direction the United Nations looks is toward Israel.  I pray that God will continue to give her boldness to proclaim truth there in that hostile place. 


While we were gone, President Trump nominated Brent Kavanaugh to be the next Associate Justice on the United States Supreme Court.  I listened to Judge Kavanaugh's acceptance speech and was gladden to hear that he believes the duty of a judge is not to make law, but merely to interpret law as it relates to the United States Constitution.  I know many fear that, if his nomination is affirmed by the Senate, then immediately such positions as Roe v Wade will be overturned.  I do not believe that Roe v Wade will ever be overturned, nor other decisions which have attacked our sense of moral structure.  The Supreme Court has very fairly in the past ever overturned a precedent case.  But, I do believe that it is the duty of the Supreme Court to decide the relationship that exists between those decisions and the rights expressed within the First Amendment to the Constitution - that of the freedom of religion and freedom of speech.  I believe that Judge Kavanaugh understands that principle from his time on the Court of Appeals.  I understand that confirmation hearings will begin in September.  This could be a very strategic nominating process that we need to keep before us.   


Also, in July President Trump met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki, Finland.  Although the final press conference probably did not go as hoped - words often get into the way - still our President believed that dialogue was the way to avoid confrontation.  Soon after that summit meeting, each invited the other to meet in Washington and in Moscow.  I am grateful that our President encourages these types of dialogues with Russia and North Korea, and now he has said he would be open to meeting with the Iranian leadership.  While he is rebuilding our military strength, President Trump understands that strength can provide an opportunity for dialogue. 


Finally, the wild fires out west continue to dominate our weather news.  Hundreds of thousands of acres have been destroyed.  At last count, nearly a thousands homes have gone up in flames.  Hundreds of people have been made homeless.  Lives have been lost.  And there seems to be no end in sight.  Yet America is not alone with such natural disasters.  Greece had historical fires that swept along their coasts taking many lives.  India was plagued with epic flooding.  Earthquakes and volcanoes seem to just pop up all over.  Again I am reminded of the words of Jesus to His disciples, "There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.  All these are the beginning of birth pains" (Matthew 24:7-8).


These truly are exciting times in which to serve our Savior.  Many people have a hunger for the truth and what a privilege it is for us to share with them that truth is found in Jesus Christ and within His Word.  Let's never compromise truth but to proclaim it with a boldness that comes through the filling of the Holy Spirit.  Some day the trumpet will sound.  I certainly want to be ready...and I trust you do as well.