Honoring Veterans Based on John 13

By Charles Moncrief

Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end. And supper being ended, the devil having now put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him; Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he was come from God, and went to God; He riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself. After that he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded.

John 13:1-5 (KJV)

In John 13 Jesus is at supper with his twelve disciples the night before he is to be crucified. He knows that one will betray him, one will deny him, and the other ten will turn in their cowardice and abandon him at the cross. He also knows that he has been given all power on earth by his -- and our -- Heavenly Father, to do with as he pleases.

So what does he do? He washes their feet. He serves them!

Which, as November 11 approaches, makes me think of our veterans.

You wore the uniform and served your country. You carried a rifle. You flew a gunship. You commanded a missile cruiser. You carried knowledge that could inflict untold amounts of damage, not only to your own nation, but to the entire world. You had power.

You served in many ways. Of those you served:

• Some will denounce you as a murderer.
• Some will spit on you in the airport terminal as you return from deployment to a foreign battlefield.
• Some will find a way to prosecute you on false charges to advance their cheap political agenda, without regard for the damage they do to your loved ones as well as to you.
• Some will pervert the Uniform Code of Military Justice and make a mockery of the courts martial because they have power without decency.
• Some, failing to destroy you in a court martial, will convene a Board of Inquiry to ruin your reputation without accountability for their irresponsible actions against you.
• Some will shout with ridicule because you salute the American flag as it passes in a parade.
• Some will burn the American flag, the very flag that will one day drape your coffin.
• Some will spew hateful epithets at your funeral, even acting falsely and hatefully in the name of the God of love.

So the question before you is, What did you do with all your power?

* You put on the uniform and served.

* You stood in the way of enemy fire.

* You slept with one eye open in the desert.

* You suffered damp feet that will never dry because you lived in a foxhole.

* You lived in constant danger because you believed in an ideal and wanted to preserve it for your family and your neighbors.

You preserved freedom for those who:

• Denounce you as a murderer
• Spit on you in the airport terminal
• Prosecute you on false charges to advance their own agenda
• Pervert the UCMJ in the courts martial
• Convene a Board of Inquiry when the court martial fails
• Ridicule because you salute the American flag
• Burn the flag that will one day drape your coffin
• Spew hateful epithets at your funeral

You are a veteran. It takes a special person to be what you are, and to do what you have done.

Thank you for your service.

God bless you.

Charles+
http://charlesmoncrief.blogspot.com