If you had one last opportunity to say goodbye to your father, what would you say? This year, America says goodbye for one last time in our history to an entire generation of fathers — men who gave everything so that their children’s children would be born in an America that was still “under God.”

They were the last generation of American men to be born from parents who were still part of the pre-modern world — the old world order of Christendom. The men and women of that world were far from perfect, but to their great credit, they still respected those transcendent values which have always been the hallmark of Christian society and which, sadly, are all but lost on this present generation. They understood that fathers led the home, that men were to lay down their lives for women and children, and that the family was one man and one woman for life.

This year marks the sixtieth anniversary of the final battles and victorious conclusion of the Second World War. Thousands of WWII vets are dying each day. There will be precious few alive for the seventieth anniversary. This is it. You and I have one last opportunity to thank these men in person, to shake their hands, to stand our sons and daughters before them, and to allow them to have a real, emotional, and personal link with the past. We have one last opportunity to honor these fathers face-to-face.

Come to Fredericksburg, Texas!
In five weeks, I will be traveling to the battlefields of the Pacific with a camera team and three generations of men, including grandfathers who once stood on the black sand beaches of Iwo Jima. This journey is part of the Vision Forum Ministries Faith of Our Fathers project. But before we go, we would like to invite you to be a part of a special gathering of Iwo Jima and WWII veterans, scheduled to take place on the weekend on February 19-20.

“Honor Our Fathers” Sunday Worship and Fellowship Lunch

On Sunday, February 20, Vision Forum Ministries will be joining with local churches in the San Antonio area for a special Sabbath worship service and fellowship celebration. We will be gathering at the beautiful Headwaters Ranch, located approximately twenty minutes away from Fredericksburg, Texas, at 10:30 a.m. In the name of Jesus Christ, and for His sake, we will dedicate the day to honoring our fathers and remembering the great providences of God during the Second World War. The worship service is sponsored by several Christ-centered, family-integrated (see our NCFIC Web site) local churches from the San Antonio/Fredericksburg/Austin region. Following the Sabbath worship, we will have a free barbeque lunch and a time of fellowship with the heroes from WWII.

During the event, we will take the time not only to hear testimonies shared from Christian veterans, but to recognize and honor each WWII veteran among us. If your father or grandfather fought during the Second World War, please bring them so we can all show our appreciation for the sacrifice they made sixty years ago for the generation that lives today.

An Old-Fashioned Patriotic “Thank You” Celebration

On Saturday, hundreds of WWII veterans will be gathering in Fredericksburg, Texas for one of the most fantastic celebrations of the year — the sixtieth anniversary celebration of the Battle of Iwo Jima. The Fredericksburg event is a world-class, small town, all-American, old-fashioned, patriotic thank-you parade. It will include numerous fly-bys from vintage WWII aircraft. (In 2001, Fredericksburg set the standard for patriotic parades with an entire day dedicated to veterans celebrating the sixtieth anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.) While in town, be sure to visit the Nimitz Museum or to watch the one-hour reenactment of the storming of Mt. Suribachi. For more information on the event, click here.

Free, but Please R.S.V.P

All events are free, and the Sunday worship and fellowship “Honor Our Fathers” cookout is open to all. However, we are requesting that you R.S.V.P. so we can adequately prepare to cater the event. To R.S.V.P., e-mail brian@visionforum.org and indicate your name and the number of people you will be bringing.

Saying “Thank You”

A great error of this generation is radical individualism — children who believe that they can hope to have a future without paying any regard to the past. The lesson of history is that those children who do not know where they came from cannot hope to go anywhere of significance. It is for this reason that Jesus Christ places honor in a central role in the success of individuals and nations:

Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee. (Exodus 20:12)

Over the years, Vision Forum Ministries has sponsored numerous retreats for fathers and sons. A reoccurring theme we find expressed among men in their forties, fifties, and sixties is the sadness experienced by many because they never really knew their fathers of the WWII generation and they never learned about their fathers’ role in the war. By and large, after the war, the men of that generation remained silent about their experiences. This omission has left a hole in the hearts of many.

Many of these men live with regrets. On more than one occasion, I have heard men weep as they declared, “If only I had asked him.... If only I had said thank you.”

I believe God is giving us a special opportunity to say thank you to the men who fought to secure our freedoms — to listen to their stories and to teach our children to honor their legacy of heroism. I hope to see you in Fredericksburg for this town’s Iwo Jima celebration, and then on Sunday, February 20, for our special “Honor Our Fathers” worship service and fellowship lunch.