One of our first stops, just across from the Visitors Center, was the National Museum of the Pacific War.
We were drawn in like a magnet.
We had no idea how deeply it would affect us.
The museum is in Fredericksburg because Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, Commander in Chief of the U.S. Pacific Fleet during World War II, was born there. But this museum is about far more than battles and military strategy. It is about people.
We saw aircraft, uniforms, weapons, photographs and personal stories from Pearl Harbor, Midway, Iwo Jima, Okinawa and beyond. But behind every display was something more sobering: a life.
Someone’s son. Someone’s husband. Someone’s father. Someone who left home and never returned.
And then there were the millions of innocent people around the world whose lives were forever changed -- or ended -- because of war.
I found myself thinking, How often do I enjoy the blessings of freedom without considering the tremendous price others paid for it?
We aren’t typically “museum people,” but lately history has been getting our attention. First, the Titanic story touched us deeply.
Now, this museum reminded us again that history isn’t merely dates in a book. History is people.
I walked out grateful for America, grateful for those who served, and especially grateful to God for the peaceful life I am privileged to live today.
But I also walked out wanting to pray.
Our world still desperately needs peace.
“If My people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray…then I will hear from heaven.” — 2 Chronicles 7:14
May we remember those who gave so much. May we treasure the freedoms we have. And may we never stop praying:
Lord, let there be peace -- and let it begin in us.
#NationalMuseumOfThePacificWar #IfMyPeople #freedom
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