Stalag Luft 111 in German means Main Camp, Air, 111, SL 111. Still unsure of what all that means, but it was the most gruesome and cruel prisoner-of-war camp in the Second World War which had captured Western Allied air force personnel.
The prisoners of war were all Allied POWs. There were two amazingly effective escape plots. One was labelled as the Wooden Horse when it was to become a film made in 1950, and the other became the very famous film called The Great Escape.
1943 was the first attempt at escaping when the POWs constructed a gymnastic vaulting horse which they designed to carry and hide the men while the sounds of the vaulting horse hid them. Three men eventually escaped. Michael Codner, Eric Williams and Oliver Philpott.
Then there was yet another famous escape by these amazing POW's. In March 1943, Roger Bushell, their Squadron Leader, conceived a plan for a mass escape. He concocted an escape committee, and they came up with the tunnel plan. It became pretty famous and was to be known as the Great Escape.
The tunnel was amazingly dug into the sandy soil and barricaded up with parts of bedding and anything that they could find. It took months, and finally the tunnel was finished, and on the night, many men were released.
Three tunnels were dug by these men, which was truly amazing. They named them Tom, Dick, and Harry, and each one was so secretive, and they had to be. 76 of the guys escaped, which to me was totally amazing considering exactly what they had to do: dig through that sand and make that amazing tunnel.
The truly sad time was that of the 76 escapees, 73 were captured, and Adolf Hitler was furious with them and wanted them all executed. He was advised by Goring and crew that if that happened, the Allied forces would bring about reprisals with huge effects on the war. Hitler hardly ever agreed to their suggestions, but this time he did, and he insisted that more than half of the escapees were shot and killed.
Extremely and extraordinarily bad, it's hard to find words to describe how you feel upon reading this horrible time for these so brave POWs. Old Hitler wasn't as brave as he thought he was. He spared a prisoner whose name was Bob Nelson because he believed that he was related to Admiral Nelson and another prisoner, Dick Churchill. After all, Hitler thought he was related to Winston Churchill, the English Prime Minister.
Where do we take this? It is so horrible to think these guys went through this. The war was extremely bad. It affected most places in the world. Even here in Australia, we had Darwin bombed, and so many people were horribly killed.
How do you cope with that? It's so hard and ghastly for the guys to be executed like they were. The families, their wives, children, parents and siblings all had to be aware of what happened. The war was ghastly enough without something like that happening, and so many people are still coming to terms with what happened to the members of their families all those years ago.
There must have been so many horrible and bad things happening throughout the war. When we consider what is happening every single day throughout the world, it's staggering, and each one of us has to cope.
In the Bible, a man was losing his son. The lad was sick and dying. We have no idea what the boy had contracted, but I guess in those days it was more than common. His dad was a pretty well-known man in the confines of the military bases and who he had to report to, but THE most important person to him was his son, and that boy took precedence over everything and everyone else in his life.
Just like today, we have our importance in our lives and what they mean to us - just like in Stalag Luft. Those guys had their importance. They needed to get out of there; they had families and loved ones, and they knew what they needed to do. Their need to escape took precedence over everything that they were enduring. I've tried so hard to get my mind over what they were going through, and I find it so hard. They were heroes and certainly amazing heroes.
Jesus was a hero. In the Bible, in John chapter 4 and verses 43 to 54 in the Expanded Bible, we have the extraordinary story of the military man desperate to find Jesus to cure his dying son. In the Bible, you can read the following:-
"Jesus left from Samaria and went to Galilee, the northern region of Israel. When he arrived there, the people welcomed him. They had seen all the things he did at the Passover festival. Jesus went to where he had changed water into wine, and while he was there, one of the king's officials came to see him because his son was so sick.
He begged Jesus to come to Capernaum and heal his son, because his son was almost dead. Jesus said to him You people must see signs and miracles before you believe in me. The officer said, "Sir, please come before my child dies."
Jesus said to him, "Go. Your son will live." The man believed what Jesus told him and went home. On the way, the man's servants came and met him and told him, "Your son is alive." The man then asked the servants, "What time did my son begin to get well"? They answered Yesterday at one o'clock the fever left him.
The father knew that one o'clock was the exact time that Jesus had said, "Your son will live." So the man and all the people who lived in his house believed in Jesus.
This was the second miracle as recorded in the Bible. My mind tells me there must have been hundreds more, but these ones that we have here are fully amazingly incredible. Jesus was incredible - like the guys in Stalag Luft. They ended up giving their lives and paying the price for escaping from the POW Camp. Jesus also gave his life for you and me.
He paid for your sins and mine on that cross, and just like the saving of the young man's life in the above story, he so wants you to give your life over to him and asks you to let him lead you in everything you do. Even in the most ordinary days, Jesus Christ will be so willing to take your life and lead you in everything you do and even say.
Jesus saved that young man's life, and he definitely wants to save yours and mine also. I know I reckon I was the worst sinner around, but Jesus saved me and made me a new person in Him. That doesn't mean that I live a purely perfect and beautiful life now. Unfortunately, I still sin and make lots of mistakes, but Jesus is willing and ready to forgive me when I come back to him and ask Him to forgive me.
Those men in Stalag Luft had the most incredible story, and their bravery is unforgettable and awesome. The fact that they were executed for their bravery makes my skin crawl. They were so determined not to accept the harsh punishment dished out to them, and they were absolutely 100 percent devoted to their own countries. It is an amazing encounter and one where we can learn so distinctly.
Jesus had the same attitude. He knew that no matter what he did and what he said, the people in those times were absolutely ready to do him in. So very much like Hitler's answer to those brave guys who made an awesome attempt to get out of that horrible and disastrous situation. Hitler's answer was execution, exactly the same as the Pharisees' attitude about Jesus.
So where are you when it comes to taking a good, hard and long look at what Jesus did for you all those years ago? Are you just as happy to let the whole thing take a nose-dive and never come back up? Jesus gave his life for you, and all you have to do is to accept that and ask him to lead your life.
I know I have, and I can guarantee to you that Jesus will come into your life and change you entirely. He will become first in your life, and your whole attitude will change amazingly. God does not expect us to live perfect and faultless lives. Actually, we can't do that at all without his help and his amazing grace.
God loves you and loves me, and all we have to do is accept his great love for us, ask him to lead us and to become our Captain in everything we do and everywhere we go.
God bless you this week, and I really do hope to see you again next time.
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