Sometime ago, General Boykin, a believer, was speaking in the pulpit of his own home Church. He made the statement that the then current war in Afghanistan was a religious war and someone recorded it. Maybe a journalist was in the crowd. It exploded in the press, and General Boykin became national news, until even President Bush had to distance himself from the issue. All of this happened because he made a statement contrary to their policy, but the problem is that every jihadist in Afghanistan believed it was a religious war.

The only ones who didn’t believe it was a religious war were the United States government, but our enemies believed it was a religious war.  That’s the war they were fighting no matter if we admitted it or not.

There's a very similar parallel happening today, but the US and NATO won’t publicly admit it, and our media reports little on it.

I’m talking about how Russia views the war in Ukraine as it regards NATO and the United States. It’s all over their media. It’s included in the often repeated threats of nuclear retaliation. Threats of nuclear war are one thing, and terrible as they are, we must not fail to see the aggressive stance veiled in the threat. The enemies have been well defined. Russia views us as an enemy and a threat, whether we do or not.

The fighting is in Ukraine, the loss of life and complete devastation is so far contained to this one valiant nation, but the enemies stare is looking right at us. There are few Ukrainians I know that would not admit that Ukraine is a piece of meat being torn between two very angry dogs.

One could say, that’s a good reason for the USA to drop all we are doing and let Russia have their victory. Give them Ukraine.

That’s a short sighted view of the larger picture, and a very poor estimation of Putin’s goals. He clearly wants more, and it’s been in his speeches for years. It’s difficult to describe the very real fear in all the surrounding countries of Europe. Without combat, Russia has already weaponized the world’s food supply and energy. Last winter, Russian media was filled with constant rhetoric of how they were going to destroy all of Europe by limiting energy supplies so they would freeze. In our day and age, we cannot underestimate how economic warfare is effective and real. It can just as readily obtain military objectives without firing a shot.

Others fear if we keep supplying Ukraine with lethal, military aid we will start World War 3. That is a very serious dilemma. But what if it has already started?

It’s a common saying these days:  If Russia stops fighting, Ukraine is saved. If Ukraine stops fighting, they will be no more. But what makes anyone believe Putin’s lust for power would end there? If Ukraine is conquered, Russia’s position and strength would be that much more at an advantage to continue more of the same. Every thinking person needs to understand that an end to war in Ukraine is not an end to Russian aggression.

The recent views on Ukraine promoted by the Republican party is a mirage of the moment. Read the article “The Politicization of the Innocent Dead” for more insight on how the same Republicans who demanded we support Ukraine (contrary to President Obama’s negative stance) are now the one’s most critical.

The hypocrisy goes further with claims of corruption and lack of oversight made by the same people and organizations that once were champions of Ukrainian liberty!  The Heritage Foundation (a conservative think tank) use to be Ukraine’s greatest friend in Washington, but has now turned 180 degrees against them because it better suits their political aims. One of my friends who worked there was sidelined for that reason, and eventually left Heritage to join the Hudson Institute where he continues to be a leading authority and voice against Russian aggression.

Should there be a Republican victory in the next Presidential election, the harsh reality of Russian aggression will most likely change their positions back to where they once were, and we will end up right where we are now. The political pendulum swings fast.

But with how many thousands more dead?  So much suffering can be caused by a waste of time and a lack of decisive action.

I’m sharing this with you to prepare your praying and to form your political will. See through the political stunts and tricks, the rapid changes of position, and look at the larger picture. There is a war taking place that has already passed the horrific body counts of American soldiers in the Korean War, and the Vietnam War, and is rapidly approaching those of World War 2. It has already changed the world as we know it.

Estimates put the civilian dead in one Ukrainian city alone, Mariupol, at over 100,000. We will never know the true figure. One friend shared with me how his best friend, in Mariupol, was forced to his knees in the presence of his wife and children, a pistol was put in his mouth and they pulled the trigger. Picking up his dead body they carried it to the street. His wife and children, and then other neighbors, were all screaming and demanding, what are you doing? They watched as they disposed of his body in a portable crematorium, and went up the street putting in more like they were gathering garbage. This evil has to be stopped.

Please pray that we get our political act together, both Republican and Democrat, and face what is quite likely the worst scenario of World War 3 that we have ever known. We must stop this before a greater global conflagration takes place.