Monday, July 04, 2016

Devotion: Honoring Our Soldiers for Christ

By Carla Clemens
We are forever indebted to those who have given their lives that we might be free.” ~Ronald Reagan
I thought maybe I would have an amazing story from somewhere in my military wife life that I could tell that would exemplify what these words from Ronald Reagan mean to me.  The truth is, I couldn’t think of one.  My mind kept going back to Jesus and his sacrifice on the cross for each one of us, but I would be remiss to gloss over the sacrifice of the people who have given their lives in sacrifice for our country, for our freedom.  Their lives were important.  What I end up coming back to is that, although my husband serves our country in the military, and my kids and I share in that life of service with him, we do not feel we are owed anything.  I am fairly certain most other military members and their families would say the same.  So if it is not a “debt” that we “owe” to those who have given their lives, then what is it? And why do we owe such a “debt?”  What did they give us?
Honor, love, and gratitude.  These are the things we give back to the people who have given their lives in sacrifice for us, personally or for our country.  They gave us our freedom, the opportunity to live in a place where we can be our individual selves, using our God-given gifts and talents to make our communities, our cities, our country, and the world a better place.
To read the rest of this piece by my awesome friend Carla, click here. 

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