Daily devotion – Remembrance Day thoughts and thanksgiving!
Tomorrow is Remembrance Day – The day is also marked by war remembrances in several other non-Commonwealth countries. In most countries, Remembrance Day is observed on 11 November to recall the end of First World War hostilities. Hostilities ended “at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month” of 1918, in accordance with the armistice signed by representatives of Germany and the Entente between 5:12 and 5:20 that morning. (“At the 11th hour” refers to the passing of the 11th hour, or 11:00 am.) The First World War formally ended with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles on 28 June 1919.
Let us give thanks to those who fought for us as Christians to be able to worship our Lord and Saviour in peace here in Australia. The cost of our freedom was enormous!
The First World War had a devastating impact on Australia. In 1914 the male population of Australia was less than 3 million, yet almost
400, 000 of them volunteered to fight in the war. As many as 60,000 died and tens of thousands more were wounded.
In 1939 Australia with a population of just 6.9 million people, 40,000 young Australians made the ultimate sacrifice in WW 11 with another 40,000 wounded.
Australian war dead of the First and Second World Wars total 102,256.
WW2 – a young Aussie Digger wrote, “I prayed a lot, I believe in prayer. I knew my parents and grandparents were praying for me so that helped me lot. And of course, I had my mates. When you have good friends, good mates, you don’t leave them. It was a brotherhood. We got a message from Port Moresby that . . . we had to stay there and fight to the death. That was horrifying. I thought, ‘Well, I won’t see my family again, I won’t see Australia again.’ But I was prepared, like the rest of us, to stay there and fight to the finish.”
Let us pray for our nation today that it will turn its heart back to God!
We also pray for the Lord to bring a revival of grace into this nation now – this we pray in Jesus name!
Jhn 15:13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.