On this day in 1881 Clara Barton and Adolphus Solomon officially founded the Red Cross. Clara Barton stands out as one of the most incredible women in American history. She was born in Oxford Massachusetts. Her family was devoted to the cause of abolitionism. Her love for nursing started at a young age after her brother suffered a head injury. She took care of him for nearly two years. Clara loved learning. She became a teacher at the age of 15 and eventually would become a headmaster of a school. Eventually, she moved to Washington DC and noticed that a makeshift tent was created on the Capital grounds. Her love for nursing came back as she worked tirelessly with the wounded, sick, and depressed. She spent countless hours with the soldiers. She became a devoted advocate for the health of the soldiers demanding that surgeons, nurses, field hospitals, and supplies go along with the army. In 1862 she joined the Union Army on a full-time basis. During the Battle of Antietam, she gained the nickname "the Angel of the Battlefield." She handed out supplies, aided surgeons, and started to make band-aids out of corn husks after the medical supplies started to become scarce. While she was tending to one man a bullet came through the fabric of her dress and killed the soldier she was aiding. She never mended that garment. Barton's service did not end after the civil war. She traveled to Europe and famously started wearing the Red Cross to help during the Franco-Prussian War. By the end of her life, she would help tens of thousands of people. Today the Red Cross has never 100 million volunteers around the world. They have been active on the most dangerous of frontlines and are typically some of the first responders.
The Red Cross' goal is to aid victims of wars and natural disasters. Today we know the work of the Red Cross mainly through their blood drives. Think of the power of blood. Each human has around 1.5 gallons of blood coursing through their body. Roughly 7% of our body weight is blood! If we start losing blood we die! The incredible thing is that through the shed blood of one man, we are given life. It wasn't so much a blood transfusion as a life transfusion. Jesus shed His blood and gave His life for us. Hebrews 9:22 tells us that without the shedding of blood, there is no remission (forgiveness). Beloved, if Jesus does not shed His blood then we have no spiritual life. Clara Barton started the Red Cross to rescue those that were sick and suffering. Jesus suffered on the cross for those that are spiritually lost and sick to save them from sin. He alone can rescue, He alone can save
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