Sorry I didn't get this up earlier, but late is better than never.
At the risk of sounding corny or preachy, giving thanks isn't something we should only do on Thanksgiving. Be thankful for what God has blessed you with: your family, house, friends, ability to go to college, anything. These are all blessings that we shouldn't take for granted, since any of them can be taken away so quickly.
This is somewhat inspired by waking up to see footage of the standoff in Mumbai, India, but tragedy and war, conflict and persecution exist all over the world every day.
As Americans, we need to be thankful for our military for protecting us from danger abroad as well as within our borders, as well as our police, firefighters, paramedics, etc. who risk their lives to protect U.S. citizens. This is something we take for granted, and it is a blessing from God. We need to thank God for that.
But as Christians, we need to be thankful that our God is not the God of the U.S. alone. His children live in India, Pakistan, Iraq, China, Africa, all these 'dangerous' areas that we watch on tv from the comfort of our living rooms. We need to be thankful that God is watching over them. That God is in the midst of every war, every terrorist attack, protecting his children, and giving them the strength and peace to carry on through conflict and share the joy and love of Jesus with others.
I know we are almost desensitized by the amount of tv coverage of war in the Middle East and other places, but we can make a difference by praying that God continues to protect his children--missionaries as well as Christian nationals--and works through them in these difficult situations to bring others to Christ. And if you feel called as a Christian to serve in the military and protect our country, do it. We need to be thankful and pray for our troops in general, but also for our brothers and sisters in Christ who have made such a difficult decision, that they always seek to serve God in their actions. God blesses countries that protect their people, and He will bless his children who risk their lives to keep others safe.
I know I usually shy away from long posts, but this is something that I've wanted to share lately. I hope everyone has had a great Thanksgiving with their families and friends. Okay, I need to do homework.
Have a great week.
-ryan
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