TODAY IN HISTORY-JULY 03, 2011

Today is Sunday, July 3, the 184th day of 2011. There are 181 days left in the year.

AP Highlight in History: On July 3, 1863, the Civil War Battle of Gettysburg in Pennsylvania ended after three days in a major victory for the North.

AP Photo

On this date in: 1608 The city of Quebec was founded by Samuel de Champlain. 1775 Gen. George Washington took command of the Continental Army at Cambridge, Mass. 1878 Broadway song-and-dance man George M. Cohan was born in Providence, R.I. (Cohan claimed to have been - as he wrote in one of his patriotic songs - "born on the Fourth of July.") 1890 Idaho became the 43rd state. 1898 The U.S. Navy defeated a Spanish fleet in the harbor at Santiago, Cuba, during the Spanish-American War. 1930 Congress created the Veterans Administration. 1962 Algeria became independent after 132 years of French rule. 1971 Rock singer Jim Morrison of The Doors died in Paris at age 27. 1985 The time-travel comedy "Back to the Future," starring Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd, was released in movie theaters. 1986 President Ronald Reagan presided over a ceremony in New York Harbor that saw the relighting of the renovated Statue of Liberty. AP Photo/Ron Edmonds 1988 The USS Vincennes shot down an Iran Air jetliner over the Persian Gulf, killing all 290 people aboard. 2001 Former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic refused to enter a plea on war crimes charges in his first appearance before a U.N. tribunal at The Hague. 2005 A NASA space probe, Deep Impact, hit its comet target as planned in a mission to learn how the solar system formed. 2009 Sarah Palin announced she would resign as Alaska governor with 16 months left in her term.

Today's Birthdays: Actor Tom Cruise turns 49 years old today. AP Photo/Chris Pizzello Name Profession Age John Kundla Basketball Hall of Famer 95 Pete Fountain Jazz clarinetist 81 Tom Stoppard Playwright 74 Jay Tarses Writer, producer 72 Lamar Alexander U.S. senator, R-Tenn. 71 Jerzy Buzek President of the European Parliament 71 Kurtwood Smith Actor ("That 70s Show") 68 Michael Cole Actor ("The Mod Squad") 66 Dave Barry Humor writer 64 Betty Buckley Actress ("Eight is Enough," "Cats") 64 Jan Smithers Actress ("WKRP In Cincinnati") 62 Montel Williams Talk show host 55 Thomas Gibson Actor ("Dharma and Greg") 49 Hunter Tylo Actress ("The Bold and the Beautiful") 49 Yeardley Smith Actress ("The Simpsons") 47 Moises Alou Baseball player 45 Audra McDonald Singer, actress 41 Shoshannah Stern Actress 31 Actor Patrick Wilson turns 38 years old today. AP Photo/Peter Kramer

“A Prayer For Harvest Workers”

Father, we thank You that we’re part of Your overall plan to harvest souls into the kingdom of heaven.  Open our eyes as we look at the field of souls ripe for harvest. Show us ways in which we can enlarge our circle of influence.  What a joy it is to see believers grow in their faith as we diligently plant seeds of salvation and water them with truths from Your Holy Word and by our Christian testimony.  Amen.

Quote of the Day

People don't notice whether it's winter or summer when they're happy.

Anton Chekhov