Another Reality

When folks think of war I am almost certain that they think about soldiers and battles or of families back home.  Very rarely does one hear about the impact national conflicts have on local populations.  For instance:

Here in Petersburg, Virginia, one early morning during the Civil War, the minister of this church

came to his sanctuary and found a soldier sitting with his back to the church.  At first glance the minister believed the man to be wounded, but as he got closer he realized the young man had died there.  It then became necessary for the minister to ask a neighbor to help him move the man to a cemetery before ladies and children in the neighborhood happened upon him. 

Petersburg was under siege for almost a year - the longest siege of the war.  As horrifying as it was I can only imagine that one would have to multiply it exponentially to consider what life in London would have been like during the German Nazi blitz of World War II.  Other cities across Europe were very nearly wiped from the face of the earth.

Matthew (Chapter 24) and Mark (Chapter 13) quote Jesus in the Bible:  When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be frightened; those things must take place; but that is not yet the end.

If you have a Bible, pull it out and read these chapters in their entirety - or download a Bible online and read this.  Read it slowly.  Go to a local church - you don't even need to wait for Sunday services - and ask the pastor to help you understand it.  If each man, woman, and child on earth would know these words and accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour, maybe, just maybe, all of this could be avoided...