The Home Of The Brave

11 Nov

“This will remain the Land of the Free only so long as it is the Home of the Brave.”
~ Elmer Davis

When I was young, the movie My Bodyguard came out.  I have to say that I found it quite intriguing.  When I was younger, I was a bit frightened of the stronger, more powerful people in my classes.  Many of them were great athletes and some of them were quite formidable.  When I was around them, I felt timid at best and scared at worst.  Not that anything ever happened to me; but, I was always afraid that I would be one of the people who got bullied and beat up.

So, when someone came to the protection of students being bullied in that movie, I had a marvelous sense of delight.  There is inside each and every one of us, I think, a person that longs for many things.  There is a person that longs to be loved and cared for.  There is also a person that longs to feel protected.

Today, we honor our “bodyguards”.  We do not call them bodyguards, though.  Instead, we call them veterans.  Same reality, different names.  Our veterans were those who went into the military to preserve our freedom.  Oftentimes, they faced grave peril.  Some of them were scarred by action overseas and came back physically injured.  Others might have been wounded emotionally and came back different from when they first left.

As we often do, when people went into the military to fight for us and preserve our freedom, we spoke highly of them.  When they returned, however, we often ignored them.  Today is a day not to ignore but to recognize.  We recognize all of those who have served in our military in order that we might be free.  We thank them for their service.  That is the very least that we could do.

We also need to attempt to make sure that our veterans are cared for appropriately, that they receive the medical and emotional care that they require.  Just because their time of service is complete does not make them any less important.  If they did not go into service, we might not be free this very day.

To all of our veterans, Thank You.  I pray that you know of our profound thanks and respect and I pray that you might be able to enjoy the peace that you won for us.

FAITH ACTION:  Pray for all of our veterans, that they know of our appreciation for all that they have done and that any who are in need might be provided for this day.