Take Courage

Pray for Veterans, part 2

May 7, 2010 at 1:33 pm | Posted in prayer, Veterans | Leave a comment
Tags: Memorial Day, prayer, Veterans

As we get ready to celebrate Memorial Day we need to remember that it is much more than a day off from work. It is much more than an extended weekend. Now, too some people that is all it means to them. It’s just time off from work or time to put the garden in or time to go to the cookout with family and friends. It is also a time to remember the brave men and women who served in the military of our country and who gave their lives in the call of duty.

I shared last week about my family’s tradition of going to Bedford Cemetery to stand and watch the parade go down Broadway. They would put flowers on the graves of family members who died. I’ve wondered who will carry on that tradition when my uncle dies. You see he puts the flowers on graves now and I’m not sure who will do it when he dies. Will the tradition die then? I don’t know.

What I do know is that some traditions are worth keeping, like the singing of the National Anthem. When I attend sporting events and the National Anthem is played I put my right hand over my heart when I sing. That is the way I was taught and it is tradition. I’ve been in the old Cleveland Municipal Stadium when about 80,000 people were singing the National Anthem. I am a lifelong Cleveland Browns fan, but that is another story for another time. Thousands of people would cheer and clap at the end of the song. It is a moving experience to me.

These are some of my thoughts as I get ready for Memorial Day Weekend. For some reason this year more than past years my thoughts are on showing practical appreciation to our veterans. Is there a veteran that you can personally say “thank you” to? If so, do it, don’t wait, do it as soon as possible. Is there a veteran that you can pray for now? What about praying for their family? If so, pray now. They may not know you have prayed, but God knows when you pray and He answers prayer. Let’s pray for:

1.      Their protection, spiritually, emotionally and physically.

2.      Their family’s protection and for God’s provision in their lives.

3.      Many to come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.

4.      The many godly chaplains to do their ministry in the power of the Holy Spirit.

5.      The families that have had loved ones die to experience God’s comfort, mercy and presence as they grieve (2 Corinthians 1:3).

6.      The general public to appreciate what these men and women do to serve their country.

7.      The healing of broken bodies and emotions because of what they have gone through.

8.      That no matter what the circumstances they have experienced, they would turn to God and not away from Him.

9.      However else God may lead you to intercede for someone.

Thank you for praying. Your prayers make a difference and they are important. Someone may not know you are praying for them down here, but Almighty God knows you are praying. God responds to His people’s prayers. Stay faithful and hopeful!

Much GRACE and peace to you,

Bill (a fellow-laborer)

Romans 15:13; John 15:7

A “veteran” – whether active duty, discharged, retired or reserve – is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank check made payable to the “United States of America,” for an amount “up to and including his/her life.”

–         Anonymous

–         Daily Strength for the Battle, p.12.

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“The nation that makes a great distinction between its scholars and its warriors will have its thinking done by cowards and its fighting done by fools.”

–         Thucydides

If I Knew Then by Brian Willis, p. 59.