It’s amazing the scenarios that God uses to get our attention. He gave me a strong reminder recently on a flight from Dallas to Phoenix. As with so many flights nowadays, the plane was pretty full and the standby passengers were biting their nails, hoping to snag a seat before it took off. At final count there were two seats left and two exuberant soldiers hurried on to claim them.

One of these servicemen sat right behind me and I couldn’t help but overhear his conversation with the passenger seated next to him. This soldier was headed home for a short two week leave to see his oldest son graduate from high school. He proudly spoke of each of his five children and then, with a hitch in his voice, this warrior Dad said that his oldest son had already enlisted in the Army and would be heading to boot camp before he left to go back to complete his fourth tour of duty.

His seat mate then said what I wanted to turn around and say, “Thank you so much for serving our country”. It was then that this humble soldier spoke up about his wife and confessed that he couldn’t serve without her support and hard work at home. He actually said that she had the harder job – raising their five children, working to help pay the bills and living with the daily fear of losing her husband.

That was when God convicted me about my lack of prayer for our soldiers and their families. Regardless of what you think about war and this one in particular, war and the conflicts caused by evil in this world are hard on families. Personally, I have never had to say good bye to a loved one serving our country knowing that there is a chance that might be my last goodbye. But as a wife and a mom, I can only imagine how hard it is. All of us can pray, and all of us should pray for the men and women who are laying their lives and future on the line for us, whether they are on a foreign field or right here among us.

I have determined to pray for these guardians of freedom and their families every time I brush my teeth. Would you join me in lifting them up to a God who cares?

©Copyright 2010 Family Matters and Darcy Kimmel

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