And it is He who changes the times
and epochs; He removes kings and establishes kings; He gives wisdom to wise
men, and knowledge to men of understanding.
Daniel 2:21
The life of
George Washington in our American heritage is vaguely taught to school children
today. The facts he was the ‘Father of
our Country’ and the commanding general of the Continental Army during the
American War of Independence are quickly brushed over. Yet the man is a miracle.
On July 9,
1755 Washington was a 23 year old Virginia colonel acting as an aide to British
General Edward Braddock. Braddock’s
orders were to take troops into the Ohio Country and push the French presence
out of the country. His first mission
was to take Fort Duquesne (doo-KANE) and push north after the enemy.
Braddock’s
troops met French and Canadian troops accompanied by their Native American
allies on July 9th at the Monongahela River in what is now western Pennsylvania. Even though the French were outnumbered
nearly 2 to 1 their stealth and fighting tactics of firing from behind cover
decimated the ranks of the British who were ordered to stand in the open in
ranks and return fire in the European fashion.
After three hours of furious fighting General Braddock was mortally
wounded. Of the 86 original British
officers 26 were killed and 37 wounded. Washington, his 6’2” frame an inviting
target, was unharmed even after having two horses shot from beneath him. While he had no official position in the
chain of command he was able to restore some order among the ranks and
developed a rear guard action allowing the remaining troops to disengage from
the French. By sunset the British were
in full retreat, fleeing back down the road on which they had come. Of the 1300
British soldiers 878 had been killed or wounded while French losses totaled 39. It was a stunning defeat for the British.
But the
story does not end there. Fifteen years
later, in 1770, an old Indian chief named Red Hawk requested to see Washington. The aged Indian said he was at the battle and
remembered Washington being in the thick of the fighting and telling his braves
to kill the officer on the horse. Red
Hawk said one of his men fired point blank at Washington 22 times and Red Hawk
himself, whose ‘rifle never missed’ fired at Washington 11 times. When they realized they could not kill him
the chief ordered his men to stop firing at him believing the Great Spirit was
protecting him. After the battle
Washington found four bullet holes in his coat but to his amazement was without
a scratch. After relating this to
Washington the chief went on to give a prophecy that Washington would become a powerful
leader and would create a great nation.
These moments
in our history are buried from the general knowledge of the average American. This story of Washington at Monongahela was
expunged from school books in the early 1920s, a great loss to up and coming
generations of American school children most of whom will never know how God
divinely protected one He called to lead.
While it is often said that America is not nor ever has been a
‘Christian nation’ we have been a deeply Christian culture imbued by the
Judeo-Christian ethic and led by the vision and religious beliefs of our
founders. That culture seems to be
quickly slipping away and if not forgotten then buried by those who deny the
Godly beginnings of America. Bringing to
remembrance God’s Providence is a healthy thing for any nation. In remembering we bear in mind our special
heritage and the might and blessing by that Providence making the Father of Our Country the man God would not let die.
Ken
