One of the young men in our congregation was recently commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the U.  S.  Army.  I had the privilege and the joy of attending the Commissioning. 

Part of the program was a PowerPoint slide presentation consisting of a set of photographs of each young man and woman receiving their officer’s commission that day.  I remember seeing photographs of our young man when he was a student at our Salem School.  It brought back many good memories, because he was a friend of my son’s.  Photographs of the others being commissioned showed pictures of when they were babies, children and high school students.  I reflected on how it is the young adults who bear the majority of the burden of protecting our country from our enemies.

On this July 4th weekend, with so many of our young citizens serving us in harm’s way, now is not the time to criticize our military.  Rather we should support them with our fervent and constant prayers, our emails and letters and our care packages.   And we should not let our attention flag, because it is too easy to do something once, such as send a care package, and then forget about our brave young men and women serving overseas in lonely places.

Now is the time to trust that God answers prayer for the protection of our loved ones serving in the military.  For God has given us many promises to that effect. 

Psalm 91:7 is a particularly applicable passage: “A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you....If you make the Most High your dwelling-- even the LORD, who is my refuge--then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent.  For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways;...’Because he loves me,’ says the LORD, ‘I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.  He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him!’”

Trusting in these promises is a gift from God, the Holy Spirit.  The heavenly Father keeps all his promises through His Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord: “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are ‘Yes’ in Christ!”  (2 Corinthians 1:20)

So, on this day when we celebrate the history, the freedoms and the blessings that God gives as citizens of the United States, please continue to support and pray for our military!