(4/15/2002) I am usually hesitant to address prayer chains on Break the Chain, and I'd certainly be among the last people to tell you not to pray for our troops. But, after a flood of requests to validate this one, I am compelled to make some comments. Here's the original request, as it started circulating in February, 2002:
SAMPLE CHAIN LETTER TEXT
This was forwarded to me this morning. Let's stop what we're doing right now, and say a prayer for those risking their lives to protect our country...
At 10 am this morning I received a prayer request from church. Cathy Mitchell, who attends Spring Hills, called in to our secretary. Her husband, Tony, is an Air Force Commander in Afghanistan.
She received an urgent email from him this morning. It said, "We need Christians to pray, pray, pray. We're in a Blood Bath here!" Please pray for God's protection of our troops and HIS wisdom for their commanders.
Pass this on to as many as you think will respond.
END CHAIN LETTER TEXT
As is common with any kind of chain letter, it's text is changing as it circulates, with earnest people adding comments, more requests and additional motivation to forward it. I received this version in April, 2002:
SAMPLE CHAIN LETTER TEXT
hope you all don't mind me sending this
This was forwarded to me this morning. Let's stop what we're doing right now, and say a prayer for those risking their lives to protect our country...
At 10 am this morning I received a prayer request from church. Cathy Mitchell, who attends Spring Hills, called in to our secretary. Her husband, Tony, is an Air Force Commander in Afghanistan.
She received an urgent email from him this morning. It said, "We need Christians to pray, pray, pray. We're in a Blood Bath here!" Please pray for God's protection of our troops and HIS wisdom for their commanders.
Pass this on to as many as you think will respond.
Prayer Wheel
Lord, hold our troops in your loving hands. Protect them as they protect us. Bless them and their families for the selfless acts they perform for us in our time of need. I ask this in the name of Jesus, our Lord and Savior.
When you receive this, please stop for a moment and say a prayer for our ground troops in Afghanistan. There is nothing attached.... This can be very powerful.... Just send this to all the people in your address book. Do not stop the wheel, please.... Of all the gifts you could give a US Soldier, Prayer is the very best one.....
END CHAIN LETTER TEXT
As I mentioned above, I am loathe to break prayer chains because of the great amount of faith many have in the power of prayer. But, I have been inundated with request from readers to find out if this one is real or not. Unfortunately, the letter has proven very difficult to validate. I really had no idea there were so many Spring Hills Churches in the United States! So far, I have been unable to find the right one, with Cathy and Tony Mitchell as congregants.
This chain started circulating in February, 2002, while Operation Anaconda was at its apex in Afghanistan. We know from news reports that this campaign was particularly difficult, and we did lose several servicemen. So, this is likely the "blood bath" to which Commander Mitchell is supposedly referring. At the very least, we can say this chain is outdated because Operation Anaconda ended in March 2002.
But this chain, with its tone of urgency and personal request, is very persuasive. I probably wouldn't be able to break it if I wanted to. The elements that have made so many people question it, have also made this one very popular. If you're debating whether to forward it, ask yourself these questions:
Would this request be less convincing without the personal element?
Would it be less convincing without the "blood bath" reference?
If you want to ask your friends to pray for our troops, by all means, do so. But why not use your own words instead of relying on what could possibly be false pretenses? Break this Chain (sort of).
(4/15/2002) I am usually hesitant to address prayer chains on Break the Chain, and I'd certainly be among the last people to tell you not to pray for our troops. But, after a flood of requests to validate this one, I am compelled to make some comments. Here's the original request, as it started circulating in February, 2002: