ATM Sunday Message for November 28, 2010

Confederate Christians and fellow Compatriots:


Below is my message for Sunday, November 28th.  Please feel free to forward, reply, or use it in your camp or other newsletter.  Your comments are always welcome.


May our Lord bless each of you in His service and in service to our just Southern Cause.


Bro. Len Patterson, Th.D
Chaplain, Army of Trans-Mississippi
Chaplain, Central Texas Brigade
Member, Chaplain's Corps Committee
Sons of Confederate Veterans
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At one time or another we've all been behind an automobile with a bumper sticker which read, "Ask me about my Grandchildren." Now, I'm sure the driver of that car would be happy to show you an endless number of baby pictures and tell you who each one was, complete with an explanation of all the details concerning that particular photo. To this you would then nicely say, "You have beautiful grandchildren. You must be very proud." Or something to that effect. And they would respond with . . . "Thank you!"

Certainly it is proper that we love, care about, and be proud of our children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, but I have an idea. How about a bumper sticker that reads, "Ask me about my grandparents." Ask me about my great-grandparents, or my great-great-grandparents. Ask me about my ancestors. After all, if it weren't for them we wouldn't be here, and there'd be no grandchildren to ask about. So, to all of those who gave us life and therefore life to our children and grandchildren, let us say . . . "Thank you!"

Perhaps we should have a bumper sticker that read, "Ask me about my Southern heritage." We are proud of our Southern heritage and the brave men in Grey who so valiantly fought to defend it, and the women of the South who served and supported our just Confederate Cause. We'd love to tell anyone who asks all about it. We are proud of all those who with firm determination withstood the hardship and suffering of an illegal and unwarranted Union invasion. And, to all of them we say . . . "Thank you!"

Of course there are those who do honor their forefathers and mothers. So, to every member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, past and present; to every member of the Daughters of the Confederacy, past and present; to every member of the Order of the Confederate Rose, past and present; and to all others who have diligently and continuously guarded and defended the memory of our Southern heritage and ancestors . . . "Thank you!"

While we have much to be thankful for, and many to be thankful to, it is also important to realize who is most worthy of our thankfulness. In Ephesians 5:20, the Bible says, "Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." The Scripture tells us to thank God always for all things. Ultimately, God is the source of everything we have to be thankful for.

We can be most thankful that God loves us, and sent His son, Jesus Christ, to die in our stead that we might have eternal life. We can be thankful that He sends His Holy Spirit to strengthen, guide, and comfort us in our most difficult times. We can thank Him for preserving us, as we await our Lord's return. We can thank Him always for all things, and should began every prayer and supplication to God with . . . "Thank you!"

To all my friends, Brothers, and Compatriots, I hope you had a very happy Thanksgiving, and for all you do for Christ and our most worthy Southern Cause . . . "Thank you!"

Bro. Len Patterson, Th.D

                                   Chaplain, Army of Trans-Mississippi

Thank You!

ATM Sunday Message for November 14, 2010

Confederate Christians and fellow Compatriots:

Below is my message for Sunday, November 14th.  Please feel free to reply, forward, or use it as an article in your camp or other newsletter.

May God bless you in all you are doing for Him and our just Cause.

Bro. Len Patterson, Th.D
Chaplain, Army of Trans-Mississippi
Member, Chaplain's Corps Committee
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Fear Hath Torment!

Jesus was never one to back down, especially when He wanted to make a point that His audience desperately needed to hear and understand. So, in the face of a lynch-mob mentality, Jesus laid out some of His most direct and challenging teaching. An example of this is John 5:19-47. In these verses He states firmly the extent of His authority. Of course, in verses 16-18 of that same chapter we see that the Jews "sought the more to kill Him."

I'm reminded of a man who stood on a busy street corner and asked every girl that passed by for a kiss, only to be slapped for his effort. After a short while he was approached by another man who said, "Sir, I couldn't help but notice you get slapped a lot." He responded by saying, "Yes I do, but I get kissed a lot too." The point being, if you want to be kissed, you can't be afraid of getting slapped.

Jesus did not fear the reaction of others to His message or works. Because of His commitment to the ministry God had given Him, Jesus attracted the love, loyalty, and devotion of many. However, many others rejected, despised, and sought to destroy Him and His influence. And, this is just as true today as it was two thousand years ago.

As Christians we have been given the responsibility of carrying out the Great Commission given to us by Christ in Matthew 28: 19, 20. Today, as it has always been, the most effective means of reaching a lost and sin-sick world with the love and saving power of Christ is the bold witness of faithful Christians. All the high powered Madison Avenue marketing techniques, dog-and-pony shows, concerts, social events, and other strategies used by many of today's "churches" cannot replace the fearless testimony of our Lord's Saints.

As members of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, we also have the duty and honor of carrying out the Charge given to us by Stephen Dill Lee. Can we succeed? Yes! With God's help and guidance, as we fearlessly present our most worthy Southern Cause, I have no doubt we can and will be successful in fulfilling our responsibility to our brave and noble Confederate forefathers.

But to accomplish our purpose, we must let all those who oppose God's truth know we are proud of the cross. We are proud of Jesus Christ and proud to call Him Lord. We are proud to be Christians, and will proudly proclaim our faith to all who will listen.

We must also let all those who oppose our just Cause know we are proud of our Southern heritage. We are proud of our Confederate ancestors. We are proud of our Confederate flags and symbols. We are proud to be the Sons of Confederate Veterans, and will proudly proclaim to all who will listen: The South was right . . . and still is.

We will succeed because, like Jesus and those who served before us, we will not fear the response or attitude of others. "Fear hath torment." (1 John 4:18)

Bro. Len Patterson, Th.D
Chaplain, Army of Trans-Mississippi
Sons of Confederate Veterans

ATM Sunday Message for November 7, 2010

Confederate Christians and fellow Compatriots:
Below is my message for Sunday, November 7th.  Please feel free to forward or reply.  Your comments are always welcome.  You may also use this, or any of my messages, as a chaplain's article in your camp or other newsletter.
May God bless each of you in His service and in service to our most worthy Cause.

Bro. Len Patterson, Th.D
Chaplain, Army of Trans-Mississippi
Member,  Chaplain's Corps Committee
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Missing in Action!

Recently my wife used my truck to pick up a purchase that was too big for her car. The men who loaded the box noticed the SCV logo on the back window, and the sign below it that says, " I'm the proud descendant of a brave Confederate soldier." They thought it was "great." Especially as my wife explained that her husband was a member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans.
This has happened to her before, and to me all the time. The responses and reactions have all been positive. They may not display an image of the Battle Flag or other Confederate symbols, and they may never join the SCV, but they do have inner sympathy for the Confederacy. Often, they will proudly state that they too have Confederate ancestors. These "Sons of the South" may be thought of as "Missing in Action."
As a Christian, I have often been met with sarcasm and ridicule when I proudly state that I'm a saved Saint in Christ and love the Lord. Perhaps that is why so few Christians will speak for God outside the walls of the church. We might call them M.I.A. Christians. In writing to the Church at Rome, the Apostle Paul said, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ:" (Rom. 1:16a) The result of Paul's boldness was the founding of numerous churches and the salvation of thousands of souls. He knew where he stood, and what he stood for. The Apostle Paul was always on duty. He was never "Missing in Action."
I must admit I spend more time talking to people about the Sons of Confederate Veterans than I do about Jesus Christ. The reason is a matter of opportunity. I never run in to anyone who has not heard of Jesus, but I am constantly meeting men who have never heard of the SCV.
I believe there are hundreds of thousands, and probably millions, of M.I.A. Confederates who would like to hear about the SCV. They'd like to know who we are, what we do, and what we stand for. They may join our ranks, but even if they don't, they will be glad to know that we are defending the Southern Cause and the honor of our (and their) Confederate forefathers. They also need to know that if they do decide to join our ranks and proclaim pride in their Southern heritage, they will not be alone.
For almost a hundred an fifteen years, the Sons of Confederate Veterans have known where they stand and what they stand for. We have upheld the honor of the South and boldly proclaimed pride in our heritage. We are not ashamed of our Confederate fathers. To the contrary, we are honored to be their descendants. Indeed, we are privileged to be the Sons of Confederate Veterans.

It is my prayer that every Christian would boldly proclaim his love for Jesus Christ our Lord, who died that we might have life. It is also my prayer that every member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans would proudly stand up for his Southern heritage and honorable Confederate forefathers. We should always be "on duty," and never "Missing in Action."

Bro. Len Patterson, Th.D.

Chaplain, Army of Trans-Mississippi