If you do not know
the story of Louis Zamperini, you are missing out.
Born during World
War I, the young Californian set several speed records on his way to running in
the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. His speed continued to increase. But before he
could compete in any more games, World War II broke out and Zamperini joined
the Army Air Corps.
He was assigned to
the Pacific Theater, where he partook in many missions against the Japanese. He
already had a record of barely surviving—such as when his plane received 594
holes from the enemy—when an old B-24 faltered and took him and his crew into
the sea in May 1943. He and two others survived the crash, only to float in
life rafts on the open ocean for the next 47 days.
Their food was only
what they could catch, and their water was only what fell from the sky. Both
were scarce. Their enemies included Japanese planes, countless sharks, and deep
despair. One of the men did not make it. The men flirted with death for weeks
before Japanese rescued them and eventually sent them to POW torture camps.
For some reason, the
most feared and brutal man in the camp, Mutsuhiro Watanabe—nicknamed “The
Bird”—took especially vicious interest in Zamperini from day one. The Bird
seemed to like inflicting great undue physical and psychological torture. And
when Zamperini was not suffering under his blows, he was having nightmare after
nightmare about him—for years.
Zamperini remained a
prisoner until Japan surrendered in August 1945. When he finally returned home,
his memories of hell on earth eclipsed his ecstasy of freedom. He got married,
but dreams of The Bird continued, as did a chronic drinking problem. He became
infatuated with going back to Japan to murder The Bird.
By 1949, Zamperini’s
marriage was in shambles. But his wife Cynthia convinced him to attend a Christian
meeting led by a young evangelist named Billy Graham. Zamperini left the first
session abruptly. But the second time, he made a physical and spiritual
about-face, and submitted his life to the authority and grace of Jesus Christ.
The Bird immediately
and permanently left his dreams—as did Zamperini’s thoughts of revenge. On the
contrary, he made his trip to Japan a few years later and forgave whatever
former captors he could find. He never found The Bird, but wrote a note of
forgiveness and Christian testimony for someone to give him.
Meanwhile,
Zamperini’s marriage revived, lasting until Cynthia’s death in 2001. He
recovered to excellent health, shared his faith with whoever would listen—culminating
in Laura Hillenbrand’s recent best-seller “Unbroken”—and carried the Olympic
torch in Nagano, Japan, in 1988. He left this world last July at the age of 97.
More than surviving
World War II, Zamperini’s real legacy is faith, joy, and forgiveness. Yet his
story depended on God’s work in the life of another man. Billy Graham has
shared Christ around the world for more than 60 years. He has met with every U.S. President since Harry Truman. The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) recently reached five million decisions for Jesus, via its online wing called
peacewithgod.net.
According to The Christian Post, 20,000 people visit
peacewithgod.net each day. And in just one month this fall, 112,000 found the
site in three strife-ridden Middle Eastern countries.
Graham passed his
baton on to his family. His wife Ruth raised their five children and stayed his
closest friend all through their more than six decades of marriage. She died in
2007. Son Franklin heads BGEA, and also the major international
Christian aid organization Samaritan’s Purse. And so on and so forth…
Billy Graham has had
poor health in recent years. His family periodically issues medical updates. If
he lives until next November, he will match Zamperini’s 97 years.
Few of the five
million conversions through BGEA are as documented as Zamperini’s. But all of
them are full of God and are celebrated in heaven. Moreover, few evangelists
ever see more than dozens or maybe hundreds of transformed lives. But anybody
who extends the light of Christ to a dark world is rewarded with unending
riches and glory—no matter who responds.
Please pray that…
~~~~~~~~- Billy Graham’s ministry and legacy would carry on for decades more
- Louis Zamperini’s story—currently very popular—would draw many to Christ
- God would spur you and your church to ever more obedience in sharing the Good News
(Originally published by The Presidential Prayer Team [www.presidentialprayerteam.com]. Reprinted here with permission.)
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