“Be
thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to
Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:18
Happy Thanksgiving!
If you are like our family you realize
that you are very blessed and sometimes like our family you forget to rejoice
and thank God for those blessings.
Our family has known that we are a blessed
family and yet going through a deployment can heighten that awareness. Now that
Keith is back and we’re all getting back into a “normal” routine, it’s easy to
forget again.
I don’t want to forget. I want to remember
that while Keith was gone, God provided for our family in many ways. I want to
remember that Keith did find out what it was like to be in a war zone and how
God did protect him while he was there. I want to remember that some spouses
don’t come home alive or they come home as disabled veterans.
When our focus changes from complaining
about our circumstances to being thankful for our circumstances then we can see
how we’ve been blessed and we can thank the one that those blessings come from.
Before the rush of Christmas creeps into
your life, take a little time this Thanksgiving to remember how blessed your
family is and give thanks for those blessings.
Why
celebrate Veteran’s Day? One important reason to me is that in God’s Word, the
Bible, He says we should give “…respect
to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.” Romans 13:7b What does
the word respect and honor mean here?It means thatGod demands that we show sincere respect
and an attitude of genuine high esteem for all public officials. (MacArthur
commentary)
In November 1919, President Wilson
proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day with the
following words: "To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will
be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s
service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from
which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to
show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations…"
Do
you need more reasons to celebrate Veteran’s Day? How about that these folks
make all kinds of sacrifices to serve in America’s volunteer military force.
They sacrifice time away from their families, they sacrifice financial gain,
they sacrifice freedom to come and go as they please. How about the sacrifices
that their families make? Have you thought about these sacrifices? I thought I
had, I thought I knew exactly how hard it was for military families until my
husband was deployed and away from our family for eight and a half months. Now
I know. I also know that there is a difference if you are a Guard family and
not active duty.
We
are all busy and there is always something that will call for our attention. We
had to make that choice for this upcoming weekend. Derby race is normally the
first weekend of the month. Anything scheduled on the first weekend of the
month means that my husband can’t participate because it’s a Guard weekend.
This year though the Derby race was scheduled for the second weekend of the
month and we thought, “Yea, daddy can actually go this year.” However, we found
out that the Veteran’s Day Parade in our area is going to be on the same day.
We talked about it and we’ve decided to choose to honor Veteran’s and go to the
parade. One of the reasons we chose that is because we sense that younger
families no longer understand just the simple etiquette that we are to show
people in authority. This past summer during a Fourth of July parade, I was sad
to see that most families did not stand up when the Flag was carried by or when
Veteran’s walked by. I think that the younger people don’t have the same
respect for people who have sacrificed like older people do. We are determined
to make sure our kids understand what sacrifices have been made for us all.
Now
for our family the most important sacrifice that has been made for us all comes
from the sacrifice that Jesus made for us. Jesus was crucified on the cross and
took the punishment that should have been ours. “For God so loved the world,that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish
but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the
world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through
him.” John 3:16-17
Take
a look at this video, we think it shares the sacrifice that Jesus made clearly.
So,
the sacrifice that Jesus made is much more important than the sacrifices that
American military people have made and yet, we still believe that it’s
important to honor Veteran’s.
Here are some suggestions of how you may be able
to do that before next Sunday, November 11, 2012:
*Send
a note of encouragement to someone who has served.
*Thank
someone verbally; a simple “Thank you for your sacrifice or service to America”
is very encouraging to someone.
*Participate
in Veteran’s Day parades or ceremonies.
*Do
you have a neighbor that is currently serving or has served? How about inviting
them for a meal or making a dessert for them with a note saying how much you
appreciate them.
*Find
a USO or a VA hospital and volunteer to help at those locations.
*Adopt
a military member and write letters and send packages to them.
*Pray
for military members.
I
love this picture because it’s just hours after my husband came home and our
youngest son just couldn’t believe that his daddy was finally home.
