Thirty-Six Months “Locked Down” in Solitary Confinement! Doolittle Raid Veterans Reflect on their Lessons from Lockdown.
Why does a loving God allow fiery trials? It’s a timely question!
Today marks the anniversary of the Doolittle Raid of April 18, 1942, a crucial early victory in World War Two—and the story that inspired my debut novel, The Plum Blooms in Winter. You may have seen the raid briefly but movingly depicted in last year’s movie, Midway. And for our encouragement today, I have four Doolittle Raid veterans’ reflections on the meaning of trials.
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I put my “Rosie” 💪🏼 on to go see the Midway Movie
The movie left the Raiders downed and on the run in provincial China. My novel follows the gripping true story of eight of those airmen. They were captured, and endured the rest of the war—forty long months—as P.O.W.s, facing the worst the Japanese army could bring.
Doolittle Raider Robert Hite begins his P.O.W ordeal in Tokyo, April 1942. Detail from a WW2 publicity poster.
Brutal torture. Starvation. Thirty-six months in “lockdown” under solitary confinement. Tragically, the trial they suffered was so severe that only four of the eight men survived it. But their prison experience had a clear turning point. I’m deeply moved by this joint statement these four real-world heroes made as they looked back on it.
We were given the Bible to read. We found in its ripped and faded pages a source of courage and faith we never realized existed. The verses we memorized as children suddenly came alive and became as vital to us as food. We put our trust in the God we had not really accepted before and discovered that faith in His Word could carry us through the greatest peril of our lives.
— George Barr, Jacob DeShazer, Robert Hite and Chase Nielsen, World War Two veterans reflecting on their experience as downed airmen imprisoned by the Japanese.
Four Came Home (Carroll V. Glines, 1995)
These men endured years in the Valley of the Shadow of Death, yet they had no regrets regarding the outcome for themselves. They came to know their God.
'We put our trust in the God we had not really accepted before and discovered that faith in His Word could carry us through the greatest peril of our lives.'–Doolittle Raiders held as P.O.W.s, 4/42-8/45 – @lthompsonbooks Click To TweetWe’ve also recently observed Passover! What can we learn from the horrific plagues on Egypt? God gave His objective in those plagues, and it is clear and compelling.
Then I will take you for My people, and I will be your God; and you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. (Exodus 6:7)
“You shall know that I am the Lord your God.” Variations on that phrase are repeated nine times during the Exodus plague chapters, 7-19, while God extracts His children from Pharaoh’s brickyards. His goal? To make slaves over into “a people for His own possession” (Ex 19:5). (The Complete Word Study Bible renders this “a peculiar treasure unto Me”—how lovely is that?) Here are a few examples.
The Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord (Ex 7:5)… That you may know that there is no one like the Lord our God (Ex 8:10)… That you may know that the earth is the Lord’s (Ex 9:29)… That you may tell in the hearing of your son, and of your grandson, how I made a mockery of the Egyptians and how I performed My signs among them, that you may know that I am the Lord. (Ex 10:2)
Most of these “you shall know” statements are directed at the Egyptians. The Lord instituted the plagues so that the world would confront the truth about Him. And so His children could demonstrate they are His own through loving obedience.
Here is a thought that haunts me. The ten plagues the Lord inflicted on Egypt were a direct smack-down on their pantheon of idols.
What about this culture’s idols?
Do we idolize athletes? Entertainers? Financial “security”? Material “success”? Comfort and convenience?
In three short months, the Lord has shut down stadiums so we can’t worship athletes. Concert venues and theaters, so we can’t worship entertainers. The economy and the supply chain, so we can’t worship wealth.
Consider this for a moment. Movie idol Chris Hemsworth has amassed a $130M fortune portraying pagan idol Thor, the storm god who heads the ancient Nordic pantheon. Those movies—some of which I confess I have enjoyed—have grossed over $9.7B. No, that’s not a typo.
That should give us pause. But does it?
It may all seem like harmless fun, but we mock God at our peril!
Nineteenth-century depiction of Norse storm god Thor
The swastika, representing lightning, was one of Thor’s symbols. Shown here in a detail from a ninth-century Danish runestone.
Our idols aren’t always so blatant. When we ascribe god-like qualities to anything other than God, when we place our trust in anything other than God to provide us with well-being and security, that thing is an idol. I’m afraid we all have them—myself included. <<Cough—comfort and convenience?>>
Brothers and sisters, it’s time to cling to our Lord for our lives, rather than to things which are quaking under our feet!
Time to cling to our Lord for our lives, rather than to things which are quaking under our feet. – @lthompsonbooks Click To Tweet
Linda Thompson stepped back from a corporate career that spanned continents to write what she loves—stories of unstoppable faith. Her debut novel, The Plum Blooms in Winter, is an O.C.W. Cascade Award winner and a finalist for several 2019 awards: Christy and Carol Awards, plus the International Book Award in two categories. Linda writes from the sun-drenched Arizona desert, where she lives with her husband, a third-generation airline pilot who doubles as her Chief Military Research Officer, one mostly-grown-up kid, and a small platoon of housecats. When Linda isn’t writing, you’ll find her rollerblading—yes, that does make her a throwback!—enjoying their first grandchild, or taking in a majestic desert moonrise.
He made aviation history in WWII’s daring Doolittle Raid. Now he’s downed and on the run.
She wants to bury a knife in him. Can her victim offer redemption instead?
“A taut, crisp debut achievement that colorfully evokes the Pacific theater of WWII. Start this one forewarned: it’s a stay-up-all-night read.” –Jerry B. Jenkins, 21-time New York Times bestselling author
Winner, 2019 Cascade Award |
Finalist, 2019 Christy and Carol Awards |
Inspired by Actual Events
1942. Pilot Dave Delham revels at the success of his historic Japanese bombing mission. Until he’s caught and endures years of torture at the hands of cruel captors. Despairing that he’ll survive, Dave vows if he escapes, he’ll answer God’s call on his life.
Osaka, Japan, 1948. Miyako Matsuura longs to restore her family’s shattered honor. After watching her little brother die in a horrific American air raid, she was reduced to selling her body to survive. When the pilot whose bomb stole her brother’s life returns as a missionary, her thirst for revenge consumes her.
Two damaged people race along a collision course that could bring eternal change. Can Dave and Miyako transform their tragic histories and surrender to forgiveness and faith?
