Where does all the pain of war stop? Does it ever stop?
I defend the troops in Iraq, Afghanistan and the rest of the world because they are all volunteer. I can rationalize that they knew what they were getting into when they signed up as we did when we volunteered for Vietnam. We all felt pride, love and patriotism for being born in America and felt a strong desire to defend her at any cost.
That is noble and in this world it is unfortunately necessary. What no one knows when they first volunteer is the pain. What pain do you feel when the hot metal cuts your flesh and opens you to the world. What pain do you feel when your buddy dies in your arms while under fire. You would have tried to give him CPR if you could have found his face.
What pain do you feel when you have rid the country of a demonic terrorist like Saddam Hussein only to turn around and see the small child who just thanked you and gave you a hug for his new found freedom, turn, walk away and stepping on a misplaced landmine be blown into the next eternity?
What pain will we feel if we lose a war or pull out and watch as those we freed are overtaken by darkness again?
We will never know how bad that pain settles into each and every member of our armed forces overseas or their family members at home. We can only remember when it was our time how we felt. Then and only then do we remember that it never gets better, the pain only gets worse.
As years go by, men devise new and more painful tools of war that affect everyone who comes into contact with them. We can only hope that our great leaders, from both political parties, can put aside their agendas for the coming elections and pull the wisdom of God almighty himself into their decisions about the future of our military involvement.
Should we be there? You decide.
Look around you, determine what is valuable in your life. Determine what would cause you pain if you were to lose it forever. Then you personally decide what you would be willing to do, what you would be willing to sacrifice in order to save that which is precious to you. Then let our leaders know what you feel. There is never any joy or satisfaction in time of war.
There is no good in war. There is only pain and loss. But unfortunately that is the ultimate price we must pay for our freedom and for that which is most precious to us…life itself!
It is ultimately because of this personal pain and sacrifice that we can never forget our men and women in uniform. Because of this personal pain and sacrifice of war that we may be free, we can never disgrace or humiliate our service men and women. Never! Remember them and support them always.
Most importantly love them and keep them in your prayers daily for that is what through the grace of God gets them through to the next day.
