Psalm 18:3,39
“I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies… For thou hast girded me with strength unto the battle: thou hast subdued under me those that rose up against me.”
A period in late May 1940 became the most decisive of World War II, a time when Hitler came very close to winning. Accounts detailing the last weekend of May, recall that Hitler failed to win because Winston Churchill, Great Britain’s newly appointed Prime Minister, refused to lose. The situation was dire—the overall picture of the war looked bleak with 400,000 men of the British Army trapped across the English Channel at Dunkirk in France. There were serious discussions within the Prime Minister’s fledgling Cabinet about the possibility of surrender and what it would look like. Fear had already gripped the country with horrific visions of blood running through the streets and their fears were not farfetched.
To calm those fears and to rally the people, King George VI called for a National Day of Prayer to be held on May 26, and in a national broadcast he instructed the people of the UK to “turn back to God in a spirit of repentance and plead for Divine help.” Millions of citizens of all faiths answered the call throughout the United Kingdom, flocking to houses of worship as never before seen. God brought His answers almost immediately. On May 27, and continuing until June 4, one of the great inspirational stories of the war, the “Miracle of Dunkirk” took place.
Firstly, a violent storm hit the Dunkirk region which grounded the Luftwaffe, keeping them from killing thousands of British troops gathered on the beaches. Secondly, Hitler inexplicably overruled his generals and commanded his armored columns to retreat from advancing, at the very point when they could have wiped out the entire British army. Thirdly, the English Channel became calm like a “mill pond”—not witnessed for over 40 years—which allowed hundreds of tiny boats, driven by ordinary citizens, to sail back and forth across the 20 mile channel from England to France to rescue over 335,000 soldiers, thousands more than the anticipated estimate of 20-30,000.
Even the secular press acknowledged the hand of God. The Daily Telegraph stated, “The prayers of the nation were answered … the God of hosts Himself had supported the valiant men of the British Expeditionary Force.” Churchill and Britain “refused to lose” and survived the crisis to fight on for another five years to eventual victory.
With hearts full of gratitude, the people of Britain gathered once again on Sunday, June 9, for a Day of National Thanksgiving and throughout many of the congregations, Psalm 24 was sung as a hymn of praise for what God had done to deliver them from their enemies:
“If it had not been the Lord who was on our side,”
Let Israel now say—
“If it had not been the Lord who was on our side,
When men rose up against us,
Then they would have swallowed us alive,
When their wrath was kindled against us;
Then the waters would have overwhelmed us,
The stream would have gone over our soul;
Then the swollen waters
Would have gone over our soul.”
Blessed be the Lord,
Who has not given us as prey to their teeth.
Our soul has escaped as a bird from the snare of the fowlers;
The snare is broken, and we have escaped.
Our help is in the name of the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.”
Details from history, such as this account, give us valuable lessons about courage, resolve, brokenness, dependence, trust, and God’s miraculous power. Witnessing God’s miracles doesn’t always occur immediately—often it requires patience and the wisdom of hindsight. At times, we are so focused on the small things or the immediate, that we don’t realize that God is working on the bigger picture. What battle are you fighting right now? Are you being pursued by an enemy? For what miracle are you praying? The Lord wants to hear our heart cries, our pleadings for mercy and deliverance. Let us seek Him with our whole heart and look for His answer, perhaps a miraculous one. God is a God of miracles, big and small. He is at our side. Let us refuse to lose heart! Our help is in the name of the Lord!
Heavenly Father, there are some among us who are crying out to You today for a miracle, for mercy, for deliverance. Hear our pleas, O God. We know that our help can only come from You, and that everything is sifted through Your hands. We may not understand what You are doing but we trust You. And it is in Your name we pray, Amen.
