On Earth As It Is In Heaven

 

On Earth As It Is In Heaven.  On June 6, 1944, in the largest amphibious battle in history, Allied Forces invaded the beaches of Normandy, France, to regain ground usurped by Axis Forces. Tomorrow marks the 83^rd anniversary of that invasion, D-Day. The successful, costly re-capture of the stronghold at Normandy tipped the war effort away from the grip of the Nazi Regime and won the war.

According to some reports, General Eisenhower, who was leading the Allied Forces during that counter-offensive, expected up to 85% casualties when he gave the order to land on Europe’s mainland at the five beaches codenamed: Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno, and Sword.

In the Eisenhower Library, there is a handwritten note by the general in case of an Allied failure at Normandy (www.eisenhowerlibrary.gov/research/online-documents/world-war-ii-d-day-invasion-normandy). In it he scribbled: “Our landings in the Cherbourg-Havre area have failed to gain a satisfactory foothold and I have withdrawn the troops. My decision to attack at this time and place was based on the best information available. The troops, the air, and the Navy did all that bravery and devotion to duty could. If any blame or fault attaches to the attempt, it is mine alone.”

Dwarfing D-Day exponentially, when we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we are asking for heaven’s invasion of earth. We are allies to King Jesus and citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven. The world, the flesh, and the devil have been defeated at the cross and humiliated by the empty tomb (Col. 2:15), but they will not relinquish their usurped strongholds in God’s earth without a fight. The war has been won, but the skirmishes will continue until a physical invasion by Christ. When God gives the order, Christ’s invasion of earth will be much larger and more comprehensive than D-Day. But before God gives that long-expected order, he gives orders for uncountable, daily, spiritual invasions of his kingdom into our personal, familial, and congregational spaces through prayer. Our prayers and Christ’s return are linked.

As much as our patriot hearts might swell when the Stars and Stripes are displayed for the national anthem, our Father’s heart certainly overflows to all the prayers in his Son’s name prayed as he taught us: “Pray then like this: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Matt. 6:9-10). We are basically saying: invade today, begin here, start now with me! But know this: Christ has no “In Case of Failure” note, escape route, or Plan B. We will win because he has already won. Christ is in the act of prevailing, even today, even here, even now. “A mighty Fortress is our God, a Bulwark never failing. Our Helper, He amid the flood of mortal ills prevailing.”