The Conspicuous Gallantry Cross (CGC) is only one level below the Victoria Cross, the highest medal British Army personnel can get. 31-year-old, Dip Prasad Pun, received the CGC because of his actions during a September 17, 2010 raid by militants on a checkpoint near Babaji, in Afghanistan’s Helmand province.
Pun was alone on sentry duty the night he heard a noise that caused him to lower his night vision goggles and see what was out there. Immediately he realized that he was about to be attacked by Taliban fighters. He launched a grenade at some of the soldiers who were taking position for attack, and a major gunfight ensued. Despite overwhelming odds, and more than 30 attackers, Pun emerged victorious by firing more than 400 rounds, launching 17 grenades, detonating a mine, and (when he had run out of ammunition) using his machine gun tripod to knock an approaching Taliban soldier off a ladder.
When interviewed, Pun said, “There wasn’t any choice but to fight…I thought I was definitely going to die so I thought I’d kill as many of them as I could before they killed me.” What an attitude! When confronted by the overwhelming odds, Pun chose to fight. What do we do when attacked by our adversary, the devil? So many times, we choose to ignore the sin or retreat from evil. Unfortunately, when dealing with sin and Satan, both of these reactions lead to defeat. Rather, James tells us, “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (James 4:7).
We need to see sin like Pun saw the Taliban. If we don’t fight, it will kill our very souls. There is no choice but to attack, knowing that we draw the anger of the enemy when we do. Even if we have to fire off every round in our spiritual arsenal, it is a battle worth fighting! 1 Peter 5: 8-9, says “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.”
(These thoughts came from research I did after reading an article by Brett Petrillo. The credit goes to Brett for bringing this to our attention and for some parts of this article.)
