Remembering the Veterans
Today’s inspiration has everything to do with the fact that we are celebrating a wonderful holiday. For those that may not know, today is Veterans Day: a federal holiday in the United States observed annually on November 11th to honor all of those who have served the country in war or peace — dead or alive — and especially to thank living veterans for their amazing sacrifices.
As I woke up today, I began pondering on the true definition of a Veteran. Per the earlier explanation of the holiday, a veteran is a person who has sacrificed and served in one capacity or another. In other words, a veteran is someone who has “been there, done that.” In every walk of life, there are people that have gone ahead and have become exemplary figures recognized by all as having done something that transcends themselves. This got me thinking about us as Christians. It got me thinking about how it's not only the world that has decorated heroes who have fought for a great cause, but that we as Christians also have such Veterans, whom we refer to as our “heroes of faith.”
In Hebrews 11, the Bible reminds us of certain patrons who defied all odds by faith. These patrons included Abraham, who by faith obeyed God to go to a place God would later show; Noah, who by faith built an ark to save his entire household against a flood he had never seen; and Sarah, who received power to conceive, even when her body and age had no business doing so. These patrons, just to name a few, are our modern day veterans! Thank God we have veterans to learn from.
As young people growing in the things of God, we can compare ourselves to incoming rookies in their respective professional sport. No matter how talented a rookie might naturally be, the fact that he or she is a rookie means they lack some experience that older, more developed professionals have encountered. Due to that fact, typically, a rookie is always paired with a veteran to mentor them along the way. Just like these rookies, we need people who have been, or, currently are, where we want to be. In order to have successful Christian “careers,” we must be able to draw from the input, advice and know-how of these veterans. These people can be our spiritual mentors, experienced Saints in the church or even our trusted Pastors! Even if you don’t have one now, I have good news for you: We have these veterans in the Bible that we can learn from at anytime!
Today, as we take time to commemorate those who have fought tooth and nail for this country, let’s also remember those who have fought the good fight of faith and have passed the torch on to us. Even if this Christian life has been difficult for you lately, I’d like to remind you that all of our veteran heroes of faith had ups and downs as well; however, they kept the faith at all times! And just like any good veteran does for any rookie, these same heroes have become a great cloud of witnesses, cheering and spurring us on in our Christian lives. Let’s be encouraged that if they could do it, by faith, then so can we!
Shalom.
