Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Truly Blessed and Thankful

We are truly a blessed people. I was just reading an email from Wycliffe (a Bible translation ministry), which I will share because it impacted me so much.

"The Democratic Republic of Congo, formerly Zaïre, is coming out of a brutal period of war. More civilians have died in this war than in any war since the Second World War, at least 10 and perhaps 20 times more than in Darfur. Elections were held in late 2006. Peace and stability have returned to most of the country. Millions of displaced people have moved back to their homes. However, in two eastern provinces, North and South Kivu, instability started again in August 2007. In addition to as many as 650,000 displaced persons in those provinces, another 90,000 were displaced in September 2007 alone. One Congolese translation team works in the area and their houses have been flooded with family members. One has 18 living with him."

I realized what a blessing it is to be creative and for my mind to even be able to focus on stamping, creating, watching movies, and enjoying life. That is not the case for millions of people - wondering where their next meal will come from, looking for a place to lay their head, needing peace in their hearts and minds so they can sleep, needing a warm or cool place to get out of the elements, and many other situations. Some may be in physical pain, split up from their families and loved ones, have no one to call friend, or worse yet....Godless, faithless, and without an eternal home with Jesus. The possibilities are endless.

With the remembrance of Veteran's Day (yesterday), what a wonderful blessing to meditate on...our country's freedom and prosperity - a gift of God.

Thank you Grannie B, Tina B (Grannie's close friend), my late Grandad, my late Pappaw, and all veterans who have sacrificed to fight for our country. Thank you to the soldiers who are fighting now, all over the world. You are loved and appreciated.

1 comment:

Mindy said...

I completely agree. Do you ever wonder how you can really show your gratitude to those who have and are serving? We live in a military town, and I think about that a lot. I work with a couple of men who are retired military. I should ask them how an ordinary citizen can show them gratitude.