Get Off the Beach!

"There are two kinds of people who are staying on this beach: those who are dead and those who are going to die. Now let’s get out of here!" - Col. George Taylor, 16th Infantry Regiment Commander, US Army; Normandy, France; 6 June 1944

Of the many famous quotes that came from US military men during World War 2, this is one of the more famous, having been used in the classic movie "The Longest Day." It was said at a time when the US Army's amphibious assault was being mercilessly pounded by Nazi machine gun nests, mortar and artillery. It was uttered when the Colonel came ashore and found the surviving members of his unit pinned down on the beach and afraid to make their way through the maelstrom that was Omaha Beach.

Col. Taylor's point was simple -- if you stay on the beach you will die. Nazi mortars and artillery had been zeroed in on the beach weeks, if not months, ahead so that the landing area was a virtual kill zone. Many men never even made it out of the surf before they fell. Many more perished on the beach. But many made it through, clearing the way for the continuing waves of the invasion force.

"Stay here," it could be paraphrased, "and you will die; to press on is your only chance to live." There were no plans for retreat that day. There was literally no where to hide and no where to run other than forward.

With my divorce, job situation(s), money issues, and such, there's been many times where I just want to curl up in my bed and hope it all will just go away. But, of course, it won't. I know that there are many who have, to some degree, felt the same way. I have a coworker and friend who, when his twins were born earlier this year, lost one of them at birth. Another friend and his wife are struggling with having children and not seeing any success. Yet another friend is a divorced dad whose teenage daughter refuses to speak or have anything to do with him. I could, unfortunately, go on and on with varying degrees of personal struggles with people I know.

Sometimes it can just be overwhelming. We don't see an end, and if we do, we don't see how it could be a good ending. It's hard - to say the least.

One thing that history teaches us, however, is that the most bitter and most difficult battles are often the most significant. And these battles, when won, are typically considered key turning points in the overall war. Our lives are no different.

We are in a war - a war for our lives and our souls. Our enemy has weapons that cause the greatest injury and destruction. God never said it would be easy -- in fact, He said it would be difficult. "In this world you will have trouble...." John 16:33b

And it is a war. The devil has only one goal -- our complete and total destruction, however that is measured in the individual. "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy...." John 10:10a

But read the full context of the two verses noted above:
"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." John 16:33

"I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep." John 10:9-11

We have the victory won. It is guaranteed and there is no doubt. In fact, our Leader gave His life for us so that we could get ourselves off of "the beach." The battle is won. We just have to press on and fight. The fight may continue as we move ahead, or we may find a place of peace. But one thing we know -- if we stay on the beach we will die. Figuratively, spiritually, or maybe even physically.

Paul knew this all too well, and I will close with his words:
"And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort. We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead." 1 Corinthians 1:7-9

"Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Philippians 3:12-14

Press on, and get off the beach. Stay - and die, or get up and move forward, and live. To quote another famous commander from D-Day, General Norman Cota, an Army Ranger, "Follow me!" And when our Commander is the Creator of the Universe who has conquered sin and death, what better Leader to follow!

Nobody said the battle(s) would be easy. Quite the contrary. But we are assured that the war is already won. What peace there is in that knowledge!

Perspective

In June 1942, the United States Navy was on its heels. We had suffered the devastating defeat at Pearl Harbor, and lost the Philippines and Wake Island. Malaya and Singapore had also fallen. The US base on the island of Midway was the western-most US-held island in the Pacific. To conquer Midway would give the Japanese near total control over the Pacific.

At this crucial battle, the United States Navy faced off against a much larger navy and one swollen with the success of preceding battles. The US had 3 aircraft carriers against 6 Japanese carriers; zero battleships to match up with 7 for the Japanese; and 25 support ships against 56.

On June 4, 1942, the US Navy located the Japanese task force. One aspect of the attack called for a coordinated attack by all three US aircraft carriers -- their torpedo bombers would attack low, the dive bombers would attack high, and the fighters would defend.

Unfortunately, as often happens in war, the attack didn't go as planned. The torpedo bombers, the slowest and largest of the aircraft, attacked first - alone. Coming in low, they began their attack runs -- locking in to straight-line attacks on the Japanese ships. The Japanese gunners and fighters wreaked havoc. Of the 43 torpedo bombers that launched that day, each with a crew of two, only six survived. One squadron, Torpedo 8 from the USS Hornet, lost all 15 aircraft -- 29 men. Only one man survived. Not one torpedo struck a Japanese ship. Not one Japanese aircraft was shot down. It seemed, by all accounts, that their sacrifice had been utterly in vain.

If the story ended here, it would have been one of the worst defeats in US naval aviation history -- 37 of 43 aircraft lost. At least 74 men killed. And not one hit made, not one enemy plane downed. But this was not the end. The last of the torpedo plane attacks ended at approximately 10am. The day was far from over.

Because all three torpedo squadrons attacked at basically the same time and with no air cover, all the Japanese fighters tasked with protecting the fleet were drawn down to contend with the slow moving, low flying bombers. The Japanese fleet had broken its defensive formation in successful attempts to dodge the American torpedoes. Believing that the attacks were over, the Japanese commanders ordered all their aircraft to be brought top-side, fueled and armed for a counterattack against the US fleet.

About 30 minutes later, the US dive bombers arrived. Coming in at high altitude they found that there was little Japanese resistance -- fighters had been drawn down to contend with the torpedo planes and gunners were still scanning the horizon for more attackers. Each dive bomber identified their targets, and proceeded to loose their bombs on the Japanese carriers -- each with decks crowded with fully armed and fueled aircraft.

When the battle was all said and done, all four of the larger Japanese fleet carriers and a cruiser were destroyed. Every single Japanese aircraft (248) was ultimately lost. The Japanese lost as many aircrew in one day as their pre-war training program had turned out in a year. The US Navy lost one carrier, one destroyer, and less than 100 aircraft. It was a devastating defeat for the Japanese which has led the Battle of Midway to be called the turning point in the war in the Pacific.

In retrospect, the sacrifice of the US torpedo bombers was credited with clearing the way for the US dive bombers. And the dive bombers, as a result, were able to eliminate all four of the Japanese fleet carriers. Taken alone, the loss of the torpedo planes was a tragic waste. But seen in the bigger picture, it was key in turning the tide of the war in the Pacific.

I write of this because in my life these days, with financial, job and family issues, it sometimes seems as if nothing I'm doing is making a difference. In fact, it can seem as though I'm actually moving backwards. It's a discouraging, difficult and even painful feeling. But one thing I have to keep reminding myself is that "the day isn't over yet." I have to keep reminding myself that what may, at the moment, seem like a major defeat, could actually be paving the way for a major victory of sorts. I don't know. But my Commander, my God, does know. His is a perspective that no man could ever hope to have. And while I'm sure there are decisions I have made, things I have done, and things that my wife and I did as a couple, that were not what He ideally wanted for us -- He can still use those things to produce a greater good if I/we are open to being used by Him for His purposes.

The problem with us humans is that our world revolves around us. We want the credit, the glory and the attention. But the first thing that a new recruit learns in the military is that there is no "you". There is only the team. Each exists for the other for the greater good of the whole. This is the root of heroism -- putting the interests of others before one's self. This is what led the men of Torpedo 8 to do what they did, even as they saw their shipmates crashing into the ocean around them. God calls us to put Him first. His glory, His desires, His will, His plans -- for our good.

In short, my point, to myself and to you, is this -- don't be discouraged by "today." Today is temporary and fleeting and ultimately leads to tomorrow. And tomorrow is only influenced by our yesterdays, not determined by them. Only God determines what our tomorrow will be. We must focus our eyes not upon today, or yesterday, or what we think tomorrow will be, but upon Him and only Him. What seem to be our worst defeats may lead to our greatest triumphs. Our greatest mistakes can lead to our greatest successes. The God who formed a living man from simple dirt is not limited by our mortal perspective. And if we are bold enough to put our faith in Him and in His plans, neither is our future limited or for naught.

Perspective -- whose will you follow? That of mortal and time-constrained man? Or that of Eternal and Almighty God?

"'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'" Jeremiah 29:11

"'For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,' declares the LORD. 'As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.'" Isaiah 55:8-9

"Consider what God has done: Who can straighten what he has made crooked? When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider: God has made the one as well as the other." Ecclesiastes 7:13-14

"The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." Deuteronomy 31:8

Job 38 -- The Lord speaks to Job

Choose Your Direction

I've learned something in my adult years and through my marriage, separation and divorce. Referring to the spiritual realm, there's only one who pleasures in divorce and strife. And there's only one that pleasures in a healthy marriage.

From my own experiences and from those of, unfortunately, numerous friends and acquaintances, the direction you will go depends upon one of two attitudes -- selfishness, or selflessness.

Selfishness:	Selflessness:
Wants to change the other person.	Wants to change themselves.
Demands that their own needs be met.	Looks to meet the needs of their spouse.
Is attentive to their own feelings.	Is attentive to their spouse's feelings.
Pursues their own happiness.	Pursues the happiness of their spouse.
Sees only how the other person contributes to their life.	Sees how they can contribute to their spouse's life.
Sees only the deficiencies in the other person and seeks to fix them.	Sees the deficiencies in themselves and seeks to fix them.
Expects the other to encourage and support them.	Is intent on encouraging and supporting their spouse.
Always seeks an apology.	Is not afraid to offer an apology.
Demands to be forgiven.	Willing to forgive.
Wishes their spouse to join with them in their own interests.	Desires to join in their spouse's interests.
Loves when they feel loved.	Loves at all times, unconditionally.
Returns negative emotions, word and behaviors in kind.	Responds to negative emotions with love and understanding.

I'm sure there are many, many more characteristics that could be covered here. And not all of the ones under "selfishness" are necessarily bad, in and of themselves. It's when they are expressed without the reciprocal responses of selflessness. Those behaviors under the selflessness category need to be the dominant characteristics of our relationships.

This list came easy for me because I can easily see how I have been guilty of some. And for others, I show myself guilty by seeing them in my former spouse and easily being able to note them here.

Perhaps the greatest passage in the Bible regarding love is 1 Corinthians 13. How you view this chapter could be viewed in two ways -- (1) a beautiful description of love, and (2) a brutally honest description of what we as fallen men and women are. Please read below the most commonly referred to portions of this chapter (vs. 4-8), with my comments in parentheses:

Love is patient (we are impatient and intolerant)
Love is kind (we are unkind and cruel)
It does not envy (we are jealous and want what we do not have)
It does not boast, it is not proud (we are proud and full of ourselves)
It is not rude (we are insensitive)
It is not self-seeking (we are self-centered)
It is not easily angered (we cannot control our tempers)
It keeps no record of wrongs (we hold grudges and dwell on offenses)
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth (we can enjoy being mean and getting back at someone, lying and gossiping about them)
It always protects (we can cause harm and manipulate for our own ends)
Always trusts (we lie and deceive and are unreliable)
Always hopes (we have limited vision and are easily discouraged)
Always perseveres (we give up when things get difficult and demanding).
Love never fails (we let people down - both ourselves and others).

This level of love, in its fullest, is simply unattainable by human measure. It takes two people totally given over to God and to each other, with no regard for their own self. In doing this, the relationship is made perfect -- each living for the other as they live for God.

How do we know what love is? "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers (1 John 3:16)." Jesus not only died for us, He lived for us. And lives for us still. And His love for us extended to the point of sacrificing His lif for ours. It's not likely that we'll be required to go to that length, but we must be willing to. And it begins with giving up ourselves for the one we love.

There is only one who pleasures in divorce and strife -- the devil. And only one who pleasures in a healthy marriage -- Jesus. Who is being made happy by your actions and behavior? By my actions and behaviors? Remember, love is not measured only by how we treat others, but by how we respond to how they treat us, whether it is good or bad. It's all about presenting an antithetical response to human nature. Just as Christ has done for us, and it can only be done through Him.