September 5, 1755 3 P.M. would remain etched in the minds of hundreds of
thousands for centuries. The Acadians, a peaceful group of people of French
origin living in the New World, refused to take sides as the British and the
French fought for dominionship over what we now call Nova Scotia, Canada.
Once the British claimed victory, the fact that the Acadians had remained
neutral was a thorn in their sides, and on September 5, 1755 Great Britain's
resolutions towards the Acadians came to fruition. 418 men and boys aged ten
years or older were ordered to meet at the parish church,
Saint-Charles-des-Mines. There it was declared that
all
Acadians would be deported.
Forced to leave their homes behind, Acadian families were split up, placed on
different ships, and taken to different destinations. Husbands were separated
from their wives and children from their parents, and in order to completely
discourage the people from ever returning to their homeland, their homes, barns,
mills and anything else of value were burned to the ground.
The Acadian deportation of Atlantic Canada took the British 9 years. These
unfortunately people, whose only crime was that of remaining neutral throughout
a war, were sent to away places like
American colonies,
Europe, West Indies and even the Falkland islands, and there, they were also
received with hostility.
Having no idea where the rest of their families had been deported to, it was
impossible for most Acadians to ever locate their spouses and children. They
lost absolutely lost everything, even their dignity.
Acadians never expected such a tragedy. Especially since British Governor,
Philipps, gave a verbal promise to them in 1729 that they could remain neutral
in future conflicts between France and Great Britain. In fact, it was this
verbal promise that led many
Acadians to pledge an
oath of allegiance to Great Britain. Unfortunately however, the written pledge
sent to England did not include Philipps' promise, and as a result, it was never
honoured.
This reminds us of how the evil one works on our planet. He promises us the
moon, but instead delivers us an existence of slavery to addictions and
drudgery. All he wants from us is our worship and by following his insinuations
("Try it once, it won't hurt you!"), we find ourselves
in hopeless situations, with seemingly no way of return.
"'All this I will give you,' he said, 'if you will bow down and worship me.'"
(Matt 4:9 NIV)
The bowing down happens more often than not, but the promises from the evil one
are never delivered. Too late we realize that the evil one is also the "father
of lies" (See John 8:44 NIV) and according to him, promises are meant to be
broken.
Don't expect a cheque for a million dollars from him, nor a life of utter joy
and fulfillment. All he wants is our worship and when we fall prey to his
insinuations, we give it to him. Sadly, most of us still tend to believe him,
even over the trustworthy words of Jesus. Unlike the Acadians, deliverance IS
within our grasp. We just don't realize it. If we only would trust the One who
willingly died on a cross on our behalf, we could be freed.
"Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (John 8:32 NIV)
Unlike the evil one, our Maker and Saviour is faithful. He always keeps His
promises "The Lord is faithful to all his promises." (Ps 145:13 NIV), and He
also only promotes truth. "God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in
spirit and in truth." (John 4:24 NIV). He can set you free!
The Acadians had no choice but to experience a land of no return, but we have
the choice. We can avoid the land of deportation altogether, and even if we make
bad choices we can return to our "homeland" in Jesus. It all depends on who we
choose to trust!
Rob Chaffart
The Illustrator: This daily newsletter is dedicated to encouraging
everyone to look towards Jesus as the source of all the solutions to our
problems. It contains a daily inspirational story, a Bible verse and encouraging
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The Nugget: Published three times a week, this newsletter features inspirational devotionals and mini-sermons dedicated to drawing mankind closer to each other and to Christ.