As the holiday weekend comes to a close, I am reminded about the sacrifices that have been made to keep America free. Its been hard to focus on the idea of “fighting for freedom” since we have been involved in military action (war) for more than a decade. Many Americans have viewed the Iraq War as one of questionable intent and the war in Afghanistan as simply a fight against the terrorists. The irony there is that if we don’t stop the terrorists, we are not really free. We often hear people say that America doesn’t need to be the word’s peacekeeper. How do we maintain our freedom if vital parts of the world are controlled by radical governments? This is not a political blog so; I’ll bridge this conversation back to those that have sacrificed for us. We honor men and women for their service on Veteran’s Day and we remember those that gave all on Memorial Day; July Fourth is our celebration of the freedom to hold those and many other ceremonies. Those that serve or have served answered a calling much like each of us have. We all have talents and skills that make us unique in this life. Some people are too confident and we can’t stand being around them and yet others will say: “I’m not special or I don’t have anything to offer”. We all have something special to offer, our trouble is that we aren’t very good at recognizing it. I’ve had conversations about my having no trouble picking up body parts or working on people who were critically wounded but don’t ask me to pull a tooth – yuk! We all have something to offer, that’s why cops don’t like fires and firefighters don’t like bad guys. Don’t waste your time swimming in pity because you don’t feel special or feel like you don’t offer anything worthy. Start spending time seeking to understand what you do offer. Simply being a good listener is a skill that not everyone can do. Find your purpose and then, put it to work.

“As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.” Ephesians 4:1

God knows the talents that He gave each of us and then calls on us to use them when He sees a need. Too often, we get wrapped up in our own circumstances or needs that we forget to notice what God has done for us. We have all been blessed by wonderful lives and God has put us where He needs us. Sometimes we are the inspiration for others and other times He gives us people to be inspired by. It’s only when we are open to His will that we realize what is happening. St. Paul continued to write inspirational letters despite being a prisoner for his faith. He stayed strong and reminded others to live as Jesus instructed/demonstrated. He reminds us that we have a life worth living because it came from God. Are we worthy enough – absolutely! We are all worthy. No matter what we do, God says we are worthy because He sent Jesus to die for us. Our job, our bank account, our house or car or whatever we have do not make us worthy. God wants us near him and that is a life worthy of the calling we have received.