Telling.

(Easter in Baghdad)

Bringing faith to a place where you've been told to fight others primarily because of their own faith could be a difficult task to bear - let alone achieve. Our U.S. Armed Forces spent the morning in prayer as I am sure many of their families did hours later here in America. For me, bringing my burdens to the foot of the cross may be easier than for my son. After all, I have been praying for his protection, asking God's grace over his wisdom - but it's Reuben who knows he will be asked to be in this place of destruction soon.

Six Easters have been spent in Baghdad so far; let us pray that this is our last. I fully support every effort of our troops from the way they wish they could operate to the way they are asked to. I can't fully liken it to a teaching assignment, but I know what it feels like when an administration has one idea and they won't let reality set in long enough to shoulder the burden for what really is happening. As a teacher we were expected to do miracles - without assistance most of the time, and we were asked, no we were told, to produce results that would both fit the budget and be beneficial to the system before it was beneficial to our students. It has to feel something like that for a soldier.

Our men and women aren't asked to serve they volunteer. They aren't forced to wear the uniform, and they aren't mandated to put their hearts, lives, and bodies before you and I - they do it for the outcome. They do it for the inward struggle that they feel dictates what is right and what is wrong. They really are a crew of believers if ever there was one; whether that belief is in Christ or their country, sometimes (hopefully) both...but they serve at a time when we need them to be there. To God be the glory, great things He has done - - through our men, and through our women, and through our prayers.

He is not there. He is risen! Go and tell.