{"id":22634,"date":"2017-11-06T09:42:27","date_gmt":"2017-11-06T14:42:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/?p=22634"},"modified":"2024-11-27T14:31:04","modified_gmt":"2024-11-27T19:31:04","slug":"are-we-worthy-of-their-sacrifice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cccc.org\/news_blogs\/john\/2017\/11\/06\/are-we-worthy-of-their-sacrifice\/","title":{"rendered":"Are We Worthy of Their Sacrifice?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In Flanders’ Fields<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
Last verse of “In Flanders’ Fields” by Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

John McCrae wrote this famous poem just after losing a close friend at the Second Battle of Ypres in the spring of 1915. While mourning his loss, he realized his friend’s death would not be in vain if others carried on the cause and defeated the aggressors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Christ’s Cause<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The same idea of carrying on the cause applies to Christians, especially we who lead Christian ministries. Are we still carrying the torch, holding it high, for all those who have gone before us? Do we share their focus on our mission and their passion for our cause? Or have we professionalized ministry and now see it as just a program to be maintained?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We need the same passion and vision which led people to found the churches and ministries we now lead. A Christian version of McCrae’s poem might end like this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Take up our cause for Christ and know
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
Do not break faith with us who die!
Hold fast, work hard. Though trials grow,
God reigns above and here below.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

As you read through the rest of this Remembrance Day post, keep the question “Are we worthy of their sacrifice?”<\/em> in mind from a ministry perspective. Are you worthy of the sacrifices made by those who preceded you in your church or ministry? Reflecting on the question is one way to prevent mission drift<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a>
Download discussion guide<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

General Sir Arthur Currie<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One hundred years ago, Canada was forging its nationhood through its contribution to the war that was supposed to “end all wars.” Almost 61,000 Canadians gave their lives and another 172,000 were wounded in a war which they believed would lead to a better world of peace, justice, and good will.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The question we must ask today is the same question that General Sir Arthur Currie asked only fifteen years after the Great War’s end, “Where, ask the men who fought, is that new world of justice and good will they suffered so keenly to create?”<\/em> Today we must ask ourselves, “Have we done all that we can to be worthy of their sacrifice?”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I do a one man performance of the Leadership Lessons From Vimy Ridge<\/em><\/a> portraying General Sir Arthur Currie<\/em><\/a>, who was the commander of the Canadian Corps. Under Currie, Canada never failed in a single assignment and never lost an inch of ground, In the last 100 days of the war, Canada’s four divisions defeated sixty-four enemy divisions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"John
John as General Sir Arthur Currie<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Today, I’d like to present an excerpt from a speech Currie wrote for Remembrance Day 1933, which was called Armistice Day back then. His words are every bit as relevant today as they were 83 years ago! Here is what General Sir Arthur Currie had to say. You can either watch the video or read the text. Please agree with me in my prayer that concludes the text.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n