#216 (5/27) - Sunday Special - "GOLD STAR MOM "

NOTE(1): I read the other day that only 50% of Christians are registered to vote and that only 50% of those actually vote! That means that only 1/4 of the tens of millions of eligible Christian voters in this country actually fulfill their civic, and I believe Biblical, responsibility as stewards of this very God-blessed nation! If just half of Christians voted in a Biblically-informed way, we could decide most elections, and certainly the critical one taking place this November.
As we remember and honor this Memorial Day the millions of Americans who serve and who have died to preserve our freedoms, is it not a clear dereliction of our duty to our country as citizens when we fail to register AND to vote? By so doing, do we not also DIShonor the sacrifices of the millions who have laid down their lives for us? Remember and honor our service men and women, and be able to tell future generations that you interceded for them, by being sure you are registered and then voting in the elections this year.

NOTE(2): Be sure to tune in to this week's broadcast of "Truth That Transforms"(In Orlando, 5 pm, ch. 55.1)or watch it at:http://www.truthinaction.org/index.php/truth-that-transforms/ Today's broadcast includes a report on how military chaplains are being silenced.)

REMEMBER – On this day/weekend, and any time, please make it a habit as I have to walk up to someone you see in uniform and thank them for their service to our country. It will remind you not to take your freedoms for granted and to appreciate the heroes who help preserve them.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Note: A Gold Star Mother is any American woman whose child has died in the line of duty of the United States Armed Forces.

By Keo R. Gathman(Keo herself is a former Marine, the sister of a soldier killed in Viet Nam ('70),and her son is in the Army.)

As she stands beside his grave
On yet another Memorial Day,
She remembers the boy she sent away
And how he became the man resting here today.
His heroes didn't become famous playing ball.
In fact most of their names were never well known at all.
They went to work wearing camouflage green and desert brown,
Earning their reputation as the toughest warriors around.
When he first saw them in dress blues
The heart within her little boy knew,
That nothing short of becoming one of them would do.
Time all too quickly passed by
As childhood things were put aside,
And his heart's desire would not be denied.
"I love you, Mom" he said one day
"But the time has come for me to go away,"
And she knew his decision she couldn't sway.
Through tears she tried so hard to keep inside
She told her baby boy goodbye.
Writing him letters nearly every day
She often took the time to pray,
"Lord be with my boy today."
"Help him clearly see the man I know that he can be,
Grant him his most cherished dream,
Let him come home, a United States Marine."
When the time came for him to go to war
She feared as she had never feared before,
Prayed there would be no knock on her front door.
They came that day dressed in their blues
And though in her heart she already knew,
She cried out "No, it can't be true."
The man child she had sent away
Was at last coming home to stay.
He never doubted what they did was right,
And he never wavered in the fight.
Forever and always as in his childhood dreams,
Her boy remains a United States Marine.

Copyright 2006 Keo R. Gathman ( beakerless@hotmail.com ). Permission is granted to send this to others, with attribution, but not for commercial purposes.
---------------------------------------------------------------
A Closing Thought: - A veteran is someone who, at one point in their life, wrote a blank check made payable to The United States of America for an amount up to and including their life.