A Closer Walk

"The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we attain too cheap, we esteem too lightly; it is dearness only that gives everything its value. I love the man that can smile in trouble, that can gather strength from distress and grow,” Thomas Paine, born 1736 or 1737 in Great Britain, emigrated to the British American colonies in 1774 with the help of Benjamin Franklin. Wrote the pamphlet “Common Sense” along with many other things and died in 1809. We can truthfully say that through his writings Mr. Paine helped to solidify public opinion in favor of American independence from Great Britain.

The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. Each of us have had hard times at various times. Each of us must pass through these difficulties. Some may be tests. Some may be discipline from our Lord. But all of them will be used by the God whom we serve to mold us and shape us into the vessels He desires us to become. “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing; so that also at the revelation of His glory, you may rejoice with exultation,” 1 Peter 4:12-13 NASB.
General George Washington, on advice from his officers, some politicians, and others, chose to encamp the Continental Army at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, for the winter of 1777-1778. At the time the Continental Congress was meeting in Philadelphia. Protecting Philadelphia was part of the reason for choosing this particular location for their camp. Here is a quote from General Washington about the march to Valley Forge, “To see men without clothes to cover their nakedness, without blankets to lay on, without shoes by which their marches might be traced by the blood of their feet, and almost as often without provisions as with; marching through frost and snow and at Christmas taking up their winter quarters within a day's march of the enemy, without a house or hut to cover them till they could be built, and submitting to it without murmur is a mark of patience and obedience which in my opinion can scarce be paralleled.” (Nathaniel Philbrik, “Valiant Ambition: George Washington, Benedict Arnold and the fate of the American Revolution”) General Washington knew conflict.
In December 1944 during World War II the American 82nd Airborne was defending the town of Bastogne in Belgium from the German Army during the larger “Battle of the Bulge.” Pinned down and completely surrounded, the American forces were offered the opportunity for an “Honorable Surrender” by the Germans. Brigadier General Anthony McAuliffe, Commander of the 82nd responded with a one word answer: “Nuts!” The 82nd Airborne and the other units present bravely held on until they were re-enforced by General George Patton's Third Army. They knew conflict.
In a speech to the British House of Commons on June 4, 1940, Prime Minister Churchill proclaimed, “...we shall defend our Island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender...” Read the speech for yourself, it is available on-line. It is lengthy and powerful. The speech occurred shortly after the evacuation of British and French troops from the beaches of Dunkirk, France. This evacuation used over a thousand British ships and boats of all different kinds and shapes to get these soldiers off the beach and across the channel to England, where they could be re-equipped and would be able to fight another day. Churchill and the British people knew conflict.
The greater the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. The Americans did win the Revolutionary War. The Allies did win World War II. And we have the ability to win the battles and the trials we face. Why? Because we are children of the Living God, and we are filled with the Spirit of God who remains with us forever.
“For thus says the Lord, who created the heavens (He is the God who formed the earth and made it, He established it and did not create it a waste place, But formed it to be inhabited), 'I am the Lord, and there is none else...Declare and set forth your case; Indeed, let them consult together. Who has announced this from of old? Who has long since declared it? Is it not I, the Lord? And there is no other God besides Me, A righteous God and a Savior; there is none except Me,'” Isaiah 45:18 and 21 NASB.