Veterans Day

We live in a time when so many people make little or no effort to appreciate VETERANS who have served or our military who are serving today! What a shame. I wonder if our public schools teach why we have VETERANS DAY. To many it is just a day off from work or school.

Just in case, VETERANS DAY is an annual American holiday honoring military veterans. It is also celebrated as Armistice Day or Remembrance Day in other parts of the world, falling on November 11, the anniversary of the signing of the Armistice that ended World War I. (Major hostilities of World War I were formally ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918 with the German signing of the Armistice.)

U.S. President Woodrow Wilson first proclaimed an Armistice Day for November 11, 1919. The United States Congress passed a concurrent resolution seven years later on June 4, 1926, requesting the President issue another proclamation to observe November 11 with appropriate ceremonies. An Act (52 Stat. 351; 5 U. S. Code, Sec. 87a) approved May 13, 1938, made the 11th of November in each year a legal holiday; "a day to be dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be thereafter celebrated and known as 'Armistice Day'."

I suppose not holding VETERNS DAY up as it was intended is lack of knowledge, lack of patriotism, lack of appreciation, taking our freedom for granted, not politically correct--who knows. Without VETERANS serving, we would certainly not be free to worship God as we do. You ask "are you a veteran"? No, I volunteered during Viet Nam, but due to asthma, I was rejected.( Makes me a reject I suppose). I have always wished I could have served in some way, but I couldn't and maybe that is why I have a deep gratitude for those who have and are serving to keep my Great Nation free. At a grave side I did two weeks ago, the man who had died was honored with a military ceremony. I stood there by the grave and tears ran down my cheeks as the ceremony took place. (Military cermonies always bring tears to my eyes and I hope it is out of gratitude) I took a moment to thank God for his service and the service of others present to keep our country free.

May God bless all VETERANS not just this Tuesday, but everyday. I urge everyone to thank a VET and those you know or see in uniform! Take a few minutes to praise God for VETERANS and for our freedom they have given us!

Becoming Like Our Savior

Going through 40 Day of Community the statement was used several time that we need to become more like Jesus. Certainly the Bible teaches this and we should strive to be like Him! God has a plan for every one of us and coming to know Jesus as Savior is only the first step. He want us as His children to develop a close "family" likeness. One of the ways we do that is to continually change our mind set. We do that by the Holy Spirit's power. He, Holy Spirit transforms us. That is one of His jobs! He is the Great Transformer! He uses scriptural truths to replace our wrong thoughts and actions. We hear Him by meditating on God's Word!

Meditating on the Word of God is essential for spiritual change and spiritual growth! When we sin we are to acknowledge it to God and accept His forgiveness. Then we need to ask ourselves what we need to do to avoid that particular sin in the future. When we acknowledge our sin we are clean before God. Now we are ready to grow. His desire is that we turn from such behavior. He is pleased when we change our attitude, behavior, and lifestyle to conform to Christ's image!!!

Renewing our minds, confessing our sins, and making the changes in our lives are necessary to become like our Savior! We need to continually ask ourselves are we becoming more and more like Him. In my Quiet Time each day, God shows me what I need to change to become more like Him. Sometimes it is not pleasant, but it always rewarding! My desire is that I hear God and continue to make changes and become more like our Savior!