Some Gave All

"We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of Heaven. We have been preserved, these many years, in peace and prosperity. We have grown in numbers, wealth and power, as no other nation has ever grown. But we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace, and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us; and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us!"

--  Abraham Lincoln      Abraham Lincoln spoke these words 150 years ago but they still ring true today. This country has been blessed beyond measure. We enjoy a level of freedom unknown in the rest of the world. Yet in the face of these blessings we remain ungrateful. We feel like we are owed this lifestyle. On this Memorial Day I suggest you take a minute to reflect on how this country came to be in the position it is in.      We owe our unprecedented levels of freedom to God's blessings and the selfless sacrifice of the American Soldier.Throughout the history of this country, young men and women have willingly paid with their time, blood, and lives to preserve this great country. The freedom that we too often take for granted was bought with a great price. From the streets of Boston to shores of France to the jungles of southeast Asia to the deserts of the Middle East, the American military have paid in blood to purchase our freedom. They ask for nothing in return other than our respect and gratitude.      This Memorial Day, amidst the barbecue and games, take some time to remember the nameless men and women that paid the ultimate price for our freedom. If you see or know any veterans or active duty military tell them how thankful you are for their service. To any of you that either have served or are still serving, thank you and may God's blessing be ever on you.