"Stand still and see the saving power of God’s work for you.” ~ 2nd Chronicles 2:17
She usually managed a
letter every other month, and he hadn’t heard from her since just before
Christmas. Her letter began strangely: “Do you remember where you were on
Thanksgiving Day?” she asked. It seemed an odd question from thousands of
miles away.
He remembered instantly.
How could he ever forget that day!
At dawn, Vernon had
been ordered to scout a crossroad rumored to hide an enemy strongpoint. Normally,
he would’ve had his men spread out, using the trees for cover as they advanced.
But that Thanksgiving morning, something made him pause. Something inside him
hesitated, locked in a desperate struggle between military training and a Divine
warning he couldn’t name.
The Germans were
experts in deception. They hid anti-personnel mines in forests, along roads,
near bridges - everywhere vital movement occurred. They created false tire
tracks to lure Allied troops. Made of Bakelite or wood, these insidious weapons
were impossible to find with magnetic or acoustic mine detectors.
Defying every rule
he’d ever been taught, Vernon led his men straight down the middle of the road,
fully exposed by the widening glow of morning light.
Only then did they see it.
Nailed to the hidden side of the trees, where only the Germans would have noticed, hung weathered signs warning of “MINEN” (mines).
The forest had been a deathtrap laced with explosives. One step into the trees and his entire platoon would have been reduced to smoke and splinters.
Vern continued reading
his Mom’s letter. She described waking in the middle of the night before
Thanksgiving, what would have been sunrise in France, seized by an overwhelming
fear that Vern was in grave danger. "When I reached for my Bible, a
single verse from Second Chronicles 20:17 leaped off the page.” It promises
us to: “Stand still… and see the saving power of God.”
Many of us are walking
through emotional, spiritual, and cultural minefields with paralyzing fear. Instincts
fail us. The path forward feels uncertain. Yet, the path through these
challenges is shaped by where we anchor our trust. When our hearts rest in God,
He steadies us. His steady presence carries us safely through dangers we don’t
see. He’ll never fail us when we need Him the most.
Heavenly Father, thank You for going before
me, shielding me, and fighting battles I cannot face alone. When fear and
discouragement rise, teach me to stand still and trust You. Help me walk boldly,
confident that victory belongs to You. Amen
