Comments:   Every war has its battlefield miracle stories, some of which, come to find out, are passed along virtually intact from one war to the next.

The story above was already circulating by word of mouth within days of a ferocious sandstorm (described as "of 'biblical' proportions" by the New York Times) that whipped across the southern Iraqi desert on March 25, 2003, slowing the progress of U.S. forces toward Baghdad with 50-mile-per-hour winds followed by an equally spectacular thunderstorm that turned the swirling sands into viscous mud.

There was no mention in contemporaneous news coverage, however — including that of journalists embedded with Marine units — of buried minefields miraculously exposed by the heavy winds and rain.

What we do find, interestingly enough, is that a story almost identical to this, except set in the Gulf War of 1991, had been published in a Christian magazine only four months earlier and served as fodder for Sunday sermons around the world during the tense buildup to Operation Iraqi Freedom.

On November 24 of last year, Rev. Gordon Moyes of Sydney, Australia imparted it to his congregation as follows:

During the invasion of Kuwait to liberate it from Iraq, known as Operation Desert Storm, Major Michael Halt was in charge of 130 marines who were in the front line. They had been under heavy artillery fire and ahead lay thousands of Iraqi troops just over the border. It was time for them to advance. Major Halt prayed, "Dear God, help me to lead my troops wisely. Watch over us. Keep us safe. Amen." The troops wrote their last letters home and then Michael gave the order to advance. As they started forward, it began to rain - a most unusual event in the desert. This was the desert storm they had not expected!

It didn't just rain, it poured! The troops had no covering and they were soaked to the bone. Michael prayed, "Father, it is bad enough having the troops against us. Please make this rain stop and protect us." They marched on in the flooding rain until they reached the border. Now the battle would begin. Suddenly the rain stopped and skies turned blue. There ahead lay the sands of Kuwait and the awaiting Iraqis. But the torrents had washed away the sand to reveal thousands of metal discs planted across their path. It was an Iraqi minefield. In answer to Michael's prayer for protection, God had revealed every mine through the rains Michael did not want!

Now, perhaps it's just a coincidence that mere months after Major Halt's Kuwait story was published a strikingly similar incident allegedly occurred in southern Iraq, again saving the lives of U.S. Marines. Perhaps God decided to work the same miracle twice!

Then again...

Sources and further reading:

Sandstorm Offers Gritty Taste of Desert Life
Associated Press, 25 March 2003

Storm Stalls U.S. Push North
Sydney Morning Herald, 25 March 2003

In an Ominous Sky, a City Divines Its Fate
Washington Post, 26 March 2003

Sandstorm
Urban Legends Reference Pages, 13 April 2003

The Perplexities of Prayer
Sermon by Rev. Dr. Gordon Moyes, 24 November 2002

Troops Endure Blowing Sands and Mud Rain
New York Times, 26 March 2003

His Mysterious Ways
Guideposts, November 2002

Last updated: 04/29/03