[ampaterry]

Thank you, BlackEagle -

Today is Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, and I ask that we all pray for the families and loved ones of those lost on December 7, 1941. This is what brought the US into WWII.

That war was not fought only in the European and Atlantic theaters, but here at home as well. Many fine young men and women left their homes to join the armed services then, and many more men and women, both young and old, dedicated themselves here at home to the war effort. Some retired people returned to work. All took part in the rationing that was put in place to ensure that the troops overseas had sufficient food, clothing, and equipment to win that conflict. Industries across our land converted some or all of their capacity from producing goods for consumer consumption to producing war material.

I worked at Keystone Steel and Wire in Peoria, IL in the 70's, and I have seen the tools that were used during that period. Machines that made barbed wire for ranches were converted to make concertina wire for the war. Machines that made nails for home construction had been converted to make shrapnel for hand grenades. We had a POW camp near our home, and my oldest sister married a soldier stationed there. My aunt worked at a munitions factory, sewing cartridges into ammunition belts to feed the machine guns. The man that would become the father of my wife fought in the Pacific and was captured by the Japanese and endured forced labor and torture at their hands for most of the war. EVERYONE was involved in that war, and we owe them a debt of gratitude for their sacrifices.

The Word of God tells us of a time when we will have no more wars,
Isaiah 2:4 (KJV); . . . . and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

But until that time comes to pass, until Christ returns and sets up his reign of peace, we must be prepared for wars and conflicts, because they WILL come. We can only survive as a nation if we are willing to take up arms and defend not only ourselves, but those nations with which we share common goals and ideals, against those who wish to rule the world through force of arms. Satan is not defeated in this world yet, folks.

But he will be!

May God bless each one of you -