This morning I received an email with this wonderful rendition of our National Anthem; sang by our military choirs.
It TOTALLY touched my heart this morning and made me think of all those men and women in our armed services that are in harms' way. Our son got out of Iraq from his second tour this last March and out of the Army in May. He is now a college student and I'm breathing a huge sigh of relief. I have to be honest now that our son is safe I have not been as diligent praying for our troops. They need our prayers now more than ever as August was the deadliest months for our troops in Afghanistan but you will be hard pressed to find much in the news about it. I googled "Afghanistan August 2009" trying to find a good article to use here and I'll be honest it was hard to find. I found this blurb below that gives the statistics.
"From NBC's Courtney Kube and Jim Miklaszewski August has been the deadliest month for the U.S. military in the entire Afghanistan war.
As of this afternoon, 51 American service members have been killed in Afghanistan this month. That breaks the previous record set only last month when 45 Americans were killed in July.
With four months to go, this is also already a record year for American casualties in Afghanistan -- 182 U.S. service members have been killed so far this year, compared to last year's 155."
We have a lot going on in our home land right now but we need to take some time each day praying for the safety of our troops as well as praying for our nation.
If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. 2 Chronicles 7:14
25 Comments on Pray for our troops - Especially for those in Afghanistan!!!
SEP
03
2009
Marchel, That is beautiful and touching. I think of your son being home often and hope the same for the many families who are bearing this tremendous sacrifice for our nation. kate
I have lots of family members and friends serving both in Iraq and Afghanistan. There are wide opinions on if we should or should not be over there but regardless of what your "opinion" is you should never forget our troops. Support them regardless!
Great Video!
I too know of those in Iraq and Afghanistan Marchel and we can only pray for their safety. Many civilian contractors being killed over there too. Great singing.
Marchel ~ that was a very touching. I always tear up when I hear that song. I have a son in law in Afghanistan now, not due back until March sometime. We pray for him and all the troops overseas and their families for their sacrifice.
Marchel, that was fantastic, thank you for sharing it, I had not seen it before.
There sure seemed to be a lot more on the news about the war in Iraq and Afghanistan during the last administration then we have had during this administration. I wonder what has changed, that they now don't feel the need to criticize as much as they did before?
Marchel, It is so sad I am truly speechless. I don't even want to hear or see the news anymore. All our precious men and women risking their lives to keep us safe humbles me.
That was beautiful! I too have lapsed in praying for our troops... but just said a prayer and promise to remember to keep them uplifted. We cannot forget that we have our freedoms here because we have our troops over there. Thank you for the reminder Marchel.
KATE, What a relief it is to have him home. Had he stayed with his unit he would be preparing to go to Afghanistan; which would have been is 3rd tour. He is loving college.
DUANE, I think we learned our lesson from Vietnam. When our son was in uniform he constantly had people coming up to thank him for his service.
GARY, You make a good point; we should be praying for those civilian contractors also.
MISSY, I thought that was an INCREDIBLE rendition. I was one of the first emails I opened this morning and it was a wonderful way to start my day but then made me very reflective.
JOAN, Thanks!! I walk around with a big smile on my face. He is loving college. I REALLY like his girlfriend also.
MIKE, We do need to keep them in our prayers. Freedom is not Free and they are sacrificing their time service and sometimes the ultimate sacrifice for us.
JAN, What is your son-in-laws name? I would like to add him to my prayer notebook. I had a prayer group set up for our son and it gave me such peace. His first tour was awful!!!
GEORGE, Isn't it amazing how little we are hearing about this!! I thought I could just Google and find a story but it took me Googling and then re-googling and then changing my wording before I found anything.
CAROLE, It is so sad! You are right it is very humbling!!
DIANE, I saw you joined that facebook group also. That was my first reminder yesterday and then I woke up this morning to the email with this video. I guess we need to remind each other. I find it so easy to get busy and distracted and just forget.
NICKOLAS, Freedom is not Free!! We owe them so much!!
LYNDA, They do need our prayers and I find I get busy and just forget. Believe me when our son was over there I was on my knees and that's where I need to be again.
JAN, Ask him if he kows of any guys under him that do not receive boxes of goodies? I know that some of these guys are alienated from family and don't get stuff. I'm use to sending boxes and would love to do that for a soldier again.
Marchel - You and I are very fortunate to have our sons home, and "reasonably" out of harms way. I continue to hold those still in areas of conflict in my thoughts and prayers. What they sacrifice for all of us is an awesome gift.
I believe we don't talk enough about what our troops are doing. We heard SO much when this started and it has gotten to a point that you really have to search for updates now. Sad news about the casualties this year. Certainly they should be in our prayers every day.
I have many friends and friends’ children serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. I pray that they come home soon and stay out of harms way. Tell your son I said thank you for his service and his sacrifice.
Thanks for reminding us that prayer is still needed for our troops. It's sad that we tend to forget when it is not in the news. I am grateful that you son is safe and in college now.
Have a great week.
Hi Marchel, When that scripture is taken for what it truly means, we all have some serious work ahead of us. And there is no doubt about the consequences. I think too many people think that because we live in different times than when it was written, somehow it doesn't apply. These scriptures were written for all time and are as applicable today as when written. In the life of man , body and spirit, the world is not really that changed, perhaps evolved is a better term than changed. It just seems as though it has changed. A lie is still lie no mater how told or by what media, dishonor is still dishonor whether hidden in the forest or on a public street, the mechanism of life and death are still the same. If we lived in outer space through man's ingenuity or if we found a way to breath underwater, location doesn't change anything. If we can save a child from a dreaded disease, to do otherwise would be misuse of our granted thinking brains. All things are possible but it is only trough him that they shall exist by any means. It is our collective voice through our thinking and our actions that shall in the end be the determinate. Not for one war but for all waring, not for one life, but for the spirits of all lives. Not for a moment but for all time.
Marchel, this is so touching, and also concerning to learn of the increasing casualties. (One is too many.) I'm glad your son is home, and remembering your posts of last spring about this. Every thought should be towards peace...such an inspiring clip...thank you for sharing this. Blessings to you & your family.
MRYL, We are so BLESSED!! He is usually here through the day studying after he gets out of classes and what a relief to know where he is.
JOHN,It amazes me how quiet the news is about it now. Last year every time there was a causality we heard about it. It makes it more of a challenge (any way for me) to remember to pray but they need our prayers now more than ever.
SUESAN, I will! It was a good experience for him but I'm glad he is finished with his tour of duty and safely home.
Disclaimer: ActiveRain Corp. does not necessarily endorse the real estate agents, loan officers and brokers listed on this site. These real estate profiles, blogs and blog entries are provided here as a courtesy to our visitors to help them make an informed decision when buying or selling a house. ActiveRain Corp. takes no responsibility for the content in these profiles, that are written by the members of this community.
;)
;)
Marchel, That is beautiful and touching. I think of your son being home often and hope the same for the many families who are bearing this tremendous sacrifice for our nation. kate