In my devotions this morning, I read an excerpt from a book titled “From Pearl Harbor to Golgotha,” which was written by Mitsuo Fuchida, the lead pilot in the raid on Pearl Harbor seventy years ago. I thought it was worth sharing with you today:
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Whenever I thought of my past, I could not help but think of the mystery of my survival. Why was I still alive, when men all around me had died like flies in the four years of conflict? Gradually I came to believe that I had been supported by some great, unseen power. My sullenness began to be diffused and dispelled by a sense of gratitude.
Moreover, as I continued to live in closer relation to the earth, through the plants and the cattle, and the other aspects of far life, I was gradually led to think in terms of a Creator of all these things. With the increasing sense of the fact of a Creator-God I came to feel ashamed of my former godless idea that man’s own power and ability were his only trustworthy guides.
I had never been an atheist, in the extreme sense of the word, but religion had had little place in my thinking. In my early life there was very little religious atmosphere. Consequently, I grew up to manhood without any formal religion. After I enlisted in the Navy, the former “War Catechism” became the sum total of my ideology . . . .
In [the] editorial column [of a newspaper] there was a commentary which stated that the Bible was the world’s best-seller, that it had been translated into the languages of all civilized countries. The writer of the column stated that if Christians were banished to some island and only allowed one book, without exception they would choose the Bible. The writer ended with a call to the Japanese people: “Oh people of Japan, if there is any one of you who has not yet read the Bible, please read the first thirty pages with an open mind. Surely there is something there that will touch your heart.”
For me, without a doubt, this was a voice from Heaven. I started to read the Bible. I became absorbed in it. Presently I came to the Gospel of Luke.
There I faced the scene of the crucifixion of Christ. I read the words of Luke 23:34, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” Jesus prayed for the very soldiers who were about to thrust his side with the spear . . .
I am not a shamed to say that my eyes filled with tears. Immediately I accepted Jesus as my personal Savior. . .
I am positive of my conversion. There was a time when my back was turned to Christ, but now I look to Him in faith. I firmly believe that Christ is the only answer and the only hope of this world.
Eleven years after Pearl Harbor! Little did I dream that eventful morning that my view of life would be so revolutionized. Today I am a Christian! I say it over and over again. This is the message I send to all mankind with a fervent prayer that there will be “No More Pearl Harbor.”
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What a powerful testimony to the Grace of God!
KBK
