Sunday, 28th May 2023
Bible Reading: John 15:13, Luke 6:31
Memory Verse: The greatest way to show love for friends is to die for them. John 15:13 (CEV)
Benavidez requested assignment to Detachment B-56, under the control of the Military Assistance Command Vietnam, Studies and Observation Group (MACV-SOG). In April 1968, Benavidez narrowly escaped a patrol with his life thanks to Sgt. 1st Class LeRoy Wright’s intervention. Benavidez and Wright had known each other in the 82d Airborne Division. As Benavidez returned from Catholic Mass on May 2, 1968, he heard a panicked call for help over the radio. Benavidez learned that Wright was part of a 12-man team under attack. Surrounded by a North Vietnamese Army (NVA) Battalion, the team was outnumbered nearly one hundred to one and three helicopters had already failed to get them out. Without hesitation, Benavidez grabbed a nearby aid bag and, armed only with the combat knife on his belt, climbed into the next helicopter to help the rescue attempt.
With the helicopter unable to land, and realizing the team would be unable to reach them anyway, Roy Benavidez jumped into what he later described as “six hours in hell.” While running about 75 yards to the team’s position, Benavidez was shot in the leg and a hand grenade explosion struck his head and face with shrapnel. Benavidez was shot in the stomach and received shrapnel from another grenade in his back. Despite being wounded, he began once again carrying his wounded comrades onto a helicopter and ensuring that he recovered all maps, Standard Operating Instructions (SOI) cards, notes, and other classified material. On one trip, he was clubbed in the jaw by an NVA soldier and run through with a bayonet.
Benavidez killed the soldier with his knife, and continued moving injured team members to the helicopter while holding in his intestines, killing two more NVA soldiers who were preparing to kill the helicopter pilot. Six hours after he first jumped aboard the helicopter, Roy Benavidez felt himself being placed into a body bag, presumed dead. Mustering the last of his strength, unable to speak, move, or open his eyes, he spat in the doctor’s face to convey that he was still alive. After over a year in various hospitals, Roy Benavidez recovered and was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC); at the time, the Army believed there was no eyewitness to the account, a requirement at the time to award the Medal of Honor. On February 24, 1981, after finding a living eyewitness, President Ronald Reagan upgraded his DSC to a Medal of Honor.
Lesson:
1. Real friends are known for their commitment and loyalty in time of crisis. Both Roy and Wright were there for each other in times of trouble. Are you a loyal friend?
2. As unto Christ, Roy went the extra length for his friend. Friend, Jesus has laid down his life for you, what have you given back as a sacrificial token of love back unto Him?
3. Until the Spirit of God comes upon a man from on high, it is impossible to do great exploits.
Prayer Focus
1. I receive grace to discern accurately, in Jesus name.
2. I receive grace for self-discipline, in Jesus name.
3. I pull down all altars of desecration, in Jesus name.
4. I receive wisdom to live a life devoid of pollution, in Jesus name.
5. I refuse to be a deterrent for other internet users, in Jesus name.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalm 111-118