Psalm 137 - Remembering and Weeping

"By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered..."  (Psalm 137:1 NIV) Having a bit of a hard time focusing this morning on Psalm 137 as I am sitting here, remembering and weeping. So I am taking this psalm out of context.... I am stopping at verse one.

Yesterday, a wonderful friend and brother in Christ died. I am so grateful that we were able to spend our vacations these last two summers with D.J. (Everaldo DeJesus) and his wife Mikki (Megdalia). It had been about 20 years since we'd seen them before we got together again. D.J. and my husband served together in the U.S.M.C. at a couple of bases. I remember so many wonderful evenings wandering the streets of Rota.  D.J. and Howard out front. Mikki and I following behind. For those who have never experienced Marine Corps life, you should know that the Marine Corps is a very small branch of the service and those whom you serve with and their families become your family. Separated from your birth family for years, even decades, the Marine Corps family becomes your own.

Howard and I talked often in the following years about going to Puerto Rico to visit, but it never happened. It was D.J. who finally figured out how to get us together for the vacations the last two summers. We will be flying for Puerto Rico later this week. But, D.J. is not there.  And, so I sit here, remembering and weeping. 

If there is any joy today, it is D.J. who knows that joy. I remember the promise that all who believe in Jesus Christ will not perish, but inherit eternal life in the presence of God, in His glorious Kingdom. In that, there is comfort. For the privilege of knowing D.J., I am grateful. Yet, there is still grief. Life here on earth is so short and we waste so much of the time given to us by God.

May God help us all to learn not to just love, but to live that love, to live life experiencing the love of God and the love of the people He gives to share our lives with.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

1 Chronicles 18 - Administer Justice or Kill the Enemy?

Another whole chapter about defeating enemies!  Now, I have nothing against the military; afterall, my husband spent 21 years in the USMC, and yes I was married to him the whole time.  But reading about all this conquering people does weary me.  It's hard to keep track of all the people David conquered there were so many.

The main point of this chapter, I think, is found in verse 14, "So David reigned over all Israel, and he administered justice and equity to all his people."  And, it was not just his people he protected, but verse 9 also points out that in doing so he also administered just for and protected the pepole of Hamath.  As awful as war is, sometimes war is necessary to protect and to administer justice to the people.  It is about protecting our neighbors and helping them wherever they may be. 

We pray for protection of our troops who are spread out around the world to protect not just the people of this country, but of countries around the globe.  We pray for the Commander in Chief, that he would make wise and just decisions that will not send out troops just to destroy the enemy, but to administer justice.

Ok... so I guess I need to admit a recent frustration, get it off my chest...  I am just a little upset (ok... maybe more than a little) over the recent news reports that the U.S. has been sending out drones (or whatever) to "hit" men - to kill our enemy.  (I try not to watch the news too regularly, if I can help it.)  If we know who they are and exactly where they are so that we can "bomb" them with precision; why aren't we putting a little more effort into capturing them?  Makes me a little nervous that our government thinks it is ok to concoct a list of people to "hit."  Where is the line between those we will kill and those we won't?  Who is next?  If this is acceptable, will there be a time when we begin thinking it is acceptable to start "precision bombing" (with low collateral damage) people in our own country rather than arresting them so they can be brought to trial and justice for all people served?  I think that maybe way back in our minds we've probably always known that this was being done.  But, for some reason I just didn't realize it was done on the scale it's allegedly is being done today.  If we have the capabilities of capturing "the enemy" then I just really have a hard time with seeing the justice in killing them in lieu of capturing them and questioning them, brining them to trial.  This is; afterall, not David's time and we do have capabilities, other options, that were not at his disposal.