Shortly after Elizabeth was crowned as Queen, she established a day each year from then on, stating that if any of these young women who had performed such noble service, would like to come and be thanked, she would meet them at Westminster Abbey. These 40-50 older women we saw walking in were some of the very few still living. The Queen had been honoring the service of these women every year for over 50 years.

In the very early part of this century, my wife Joyce and I were on one of our many trips to the United Kingdom leading a student tour. One early morning, we had spent about an hour at Westminster Abbey with about 25 recently graduated high school seniors. We were just about to leave the Abbey when someone found out “the Queen is coming.” And so we decided that we should stay and see her. The Abbey officials eventually herded us outside and put-up small barriers from the street right up to the entrance. We were quite excited to be right in the very front. From this vantage point, we waited and waited probably an hour or so, and nothing happened. Finally I said to Joyce, “Let’s go! I wouldn’t wait this long to meet the Apostle Paul.”
No sooner had those crazy words left my mouth when I looked up and suddenly there were sharp shooters on the tops of four different surrounding buildings. And then I heard the sirens and a motorcade of motorcycles and large cars pulled up. Just before this happened about 40-50 older women were ushered by right in front of us and led into the Abbey. Some walked very slowly, some limped, all had gray hair, and I thought none were under 80-years-old.
I quickly asked someone standing on the other side of the barrier, who looked like a guard, who were these women? He told me they were probably some of the last ones still alive known as “The Maidens of Dunkirk.” And he also explained that when the infamous Dunkirk evacuation from France took place in 1940, when over 300,000 soldiers were evacuated across the English Channel, many of them were sick and wounded and close to death. The British Government was overwhelmed in trying to care for all these soldiers; they sent out an urgent request for young women in their 20s and 30s to come and help nurse and care for these suffering soldiers. Thousands responded and many lives were saved!
Shortly after Elizabeth was crowned as Queen, she established a day each year from then on, stating that if any of these young women who had performed such noble service, would like to come and be thanked, she would meet them at Westminster Abbey. These 40-50 older women we saw walking in were some of the very few still living. The Queen had been honoring the service of these women every year for over 50 years. And this special commemoration just happened to take place on the morning we were there!
And as I turned, suddenly I saw the Queen getting out of her car and walking right in front of us; maybe 10 feet away. And as she walked in she glanced up and our eyes met for just a second. That second is frozen in time for me. Not only was I staring face to face with one of the most famous persons in the world, but she was doing something so meaningful and thoughtful. No wonder the whole nation loved her, as they are showing now in mourning her loss.
Of course, the tears appeared in many of our eyes at that moment, including a number of those who had just graduated from high school, boys and girls from Memphis, and Greenwood and Hattiesburg, Miss.
There is much evidence coming to light right now that Elizabeth was a genuine Christian. She certainly made a group of Americans believe she was that morning.
Wayne Herring is a retired Minister in the Presbyterian Church in America living in Raymond, Miss.
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Psalm 121 moves from questioning to proclaiming. For most of our distress-filled days, we also go back and forth between doubting and trusting. In this Psalm, God gives His people words to communicate both uncertainty and faith. This passage provides the freedom to acknowledge our struggles, but it also encourages us to have confidence in Him. 

What does distress sound like? Each of us expresses our anguish differently, but it frequently sounds like physical tossing and turning on our beds, pacing in the hallways, tears, and cries that pour out of our overwhelmed hearts.
While these are the instinctive ways we typically communicate the turmoil in our souls,  we sometimes neglect the most important way we can express our sorrow: to the Lord. If we do not call out to the Lord in our distress, we will feel distant from Him.
And yet, there are seasons when our sorrow is so great that we fail to find words. Our hearts are so broken, burdened, betrayed, and distressed that our words fail us. In these moments, we need help speaking to the Lord.
The Lord Gives Us Words
God, in His kindness, allows us to borrow His words when we struggle to know what to say to Him. Jesus did this in His agony. From the cross, He cried out to the Lord, expressing His anguish by quoting the words of Psalm 22:
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning?” (v. 1).
Jesus, using the words given to Him in Scripture, articulated how He felt abandoned in His moment of need.
Did you catch that? Even He who knew the glorious redemptive purpose of His suffering expressed deep anguish as He went through it. He shared His heart with His Father. This should encourage us to speak directly to our Father even when we feel He has abandoned us.
The Lord Invites Our Questions
Similar to Jesus’ prayer based on Psalm 22, Psalm 121 can help us speak to God in the midst of our distress. It is a song of ascent, which means that it was sung by Israelite sojourners embarking on a long, perilous journey to Mt. Zion. They needed courage for the climb ahead. They started out in a valley and had an arduous journey before them. They were aware they might encounter robbers and challenging terrain along the way. They anticipated trouble.
Like us, when we are in a difficult or dangerous place, the Israelites were filled with fear, wrestling with uncertainty. Nevertheless, they knew they needed to head towards Mt. Zion to reach their temple.
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The World Conquered by the Faithful Christian is a military guide for Christians as to how we ought to “fight the good fight of the faith,” and is filled with practical advice for how we can best honour God in this life, for our good and His glory (1 Timothy 6:12). Therefore, it is a suitable book for any Christian to read.

The World Conquered by the Faithful Christian
Author: Richard Alleine
Publisher: Soli Deo Gloria Publications
Year: 2019
We frequently hear from prosperity gospel teachers how the Christian life ought to be one of victory and success, specifically with regard to our finances, health, and careers. In our efforts to be faithful to Scripture, many Christians — including myself — have tried to run as far away as we can from these false doctrines by seldom speaking of the Christian life as a life of victory. However, what Alleine reveals in this wonderful work is that the Christian life is indeed a life of conquest, yet not in the way we would expect.
Slaying sin, winning souls for Christ, securing the joy that is ours in Christ, and protecting the gospel are tasks to which every Christian is called, as we are all soldiers fighting for the army of the Lord Jesus Christ. For this reason, we must know how we can be equipped, and with what we ought to be equipped if we are to stand victorious in the battle which rages on.

Alleine exposes the snares of the devil

Knowing the strategies and tactics of your opposition is critical in any battle, and it is no exception when we consider the Christian life.
“The devil is a powerful enemy, having under him principalities, powers, and rulers…These enemies annoy the saints and strive to tempt them to sin” (p. 4).
Alleine challenges us to consider whether the great problem with Christians today is that we underestimate our great foe who is Satan. He shows us that if we are well-acquainted with the tactics and methods of the evil one, we will experience victory over him.
According to Alleine, the devil will use the following three strategies to lead us away from Christ:

He will overrate sin in this world, and underrate the glory of the New Creation.

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