On April 13, 2003, Marine Sergeant Tony Steward and Lance Corporal Terry Dunn, squad leader and assistant squad leader, respectively, led their squad during the Battle of Tikrit in Central Iraq. The battle went according to plan until the squad was surrounded by a larger than expected group of foreign fighters. The squad was required to seek cover in a nearby building to avoid annihilation or capture. At the end of the day, two members of the squad were injured in the fighting. One of who was Lance Corporal Dunn. As foreign fighters began massing, Sergeant Steward decided to risk his life in an effort to liberate his Marines from certain death by seeking help from higher headquarters.
Giving up ninety percent of his ammunition to his squad, Sergeant Steward ventured out under the cover of darkness to find his way to Battalion Headquarters because squad radios were damaged and rendered inoperable as the unit moved through Tikrit proper. Within ten hours of his departure, Sergeant Steward returned to the tired and hungry squad to rescue them as he had promised with a company size unit. Not one man was left behind—not even the injured Marines. The opposing forces were killed, captured or retreated.
As Jesus prepared to leave His disciples for a second time, He promised to return. He told His disciples, “If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.” Even after enduring the excruciating pain and torture of crucifixion, Jesus rose from the grave to ensure eternal life for those who would believe IN Him as their Savior by faith. This knowledge is not a leap of unsubstantiated faith, as those who hate Christ and Christianity constantly preach, but truth. Truth that is revealed by the Holy Spirit daily.
Those in Christ may rest assured that He will return to gather His own and take them to the place He has prepared for them. This is His promise for everyone is true and reliable. Jesus has always been true to His Word. This you can be assured of with or without a doubt.
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