V
... and salute the many heroes who have given all they have for this nation.
In particular, I rise and salute:
There are many whom I cannot name, because we served in a time of "peace" but were nonetheless fighting a war no one here knew about.
I rise and salute the well over two million men and women who served in the U.S. military during my 20-year career, over 60,000 of whom made the ultimate sacrifice.
I rise and salute my dad and his generation, the five million who went to war not knowing when -- or if -- they would come home, but knowing someone had to save the world. So they did, losing a half million of their comrades in doing so.
I rise and salute the men of Korea, the men and women of Iraqi Freedom, the men and women of Enduring Freedom, and all the men and women of the U.S. military who have served since the first shots fired at Lexington and Concord on April 18, 1775.
By the very hand of God, this nation was born. By the very hand of God, we have been allowed to enjoy the freedoms and blessings that man was meant to enjoy under the good will and purpose of Almighty God, not least of which is the freedom to worship Him openly, without fear, and with the true humility we have knowing it is only by His grace that such things are available to us.
But darkness grows and seeps over the land. We have not passed the torch, we have not handed off the baton. Our people no longer respect the sacrifices, the hardships, the difficulties that are required to maintain these freedoms.
Our time grows short. The fires of hell are being stoked, and will soon be unleashed on a world that does not know God, does not honor God, does not trust God. The men and women of our military have provided for us, for 240 years, freedom, safety, peace on our shores. This will soon come to an end. And then the Soldier's Prayer will be the prayer of us all.
Psalm 91, NASB
1 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
Will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say to the LORD, "My refuge and my fortress,
My God, in whom I trust!"
3 For it is He who delivers you from the snare of the trapper
And from the deadly pestilence.
4 He will cover you with His pinions,
And under His wings you may seek refuge;
His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark.
5 You will not be afraid of the terror by night,
Or of the arrow that flies by day;
6 Of the pestilence that stalks in darkness,
Or of the destruction that lays waste at noon.
7 A thousand may fall at your side
And ten thousand at your right hand,
But it shall not approach you.
8 You will only look on with your eyes
And see the recompense of the wicked.
9 For you have made the LORD, my refuge,
Even the Most High, your dwelling place.
10 No evil will befall you,
Nor will any plague come near your tent.
11 For He will give His angels charge concerning you,
To guard you in all your ways.
12 They will bear you up in their hands,
That you do not strike your foot against a stone.
13 You will tread upon the lion and cobra,
The young lion and the serpent you will trample down.
14 "Because he has loved Me, therefore I will deliver him;
I will set him securely on high, because he has known My name.
15 "He will call upon Me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will rescue him and honor him.
16 "With a long life I will satisfy him
And let him see My salvation."
Remember today those who have fallen, those you knew, those you did not.
Thank the next Soldier, Sailor, Marine, Airman, Coast Guardsman you see.
In particular, I rise and salute:
WO2 Larry Woods
1LT Larry Farris
1LT Sam Farrell
SSGT Chuck Gipson
SP5 Dan Allen
SSGT Dick Arsenault
SP4 Dick Crocker
SP4 Mel Gleaton
CPT John Greene
WO2 Bill Jesse
1LT Bernie Jenson
1LT Jon Jones
COL Stan Kuick
... brothers in arms, casualties in Vietnam.
CPT Mike Ritz
SSGT Gary Epps
PVT Dinesh Rajbhandary
... brave men, killed in Grenada
PVT Van Coast
SP4 Jerry Daves
MSGT Mike DeBlois
PVT Marty Denson
PFC Bill Gibbs
... the men of the 82nd Airborne who gave everything in Panama
2LT Kathy Sherry
WO2 George Swartzendruber
SP5 Otha Squires
SGT Bill Strehlow
FSGT Brian Scott
... good soldiers, good people, who did not come home from Desert Storm.
1LT Larry Farris
1LT Sam Farrell
SSGT Chuck Gipson
SP5 Dan Allen
SSGT Dick Arsenault
SP4 Dick Crocker
SP4 Mel Gleaton
CPT John Greene
WO2 Bill Jesse
1LT Bernie Jenson
1LT Jon Jones
COL Stan Kuick
... brothers in arms, casualties in Vietnam.
CPT Mike Ritz
SSGT Gary Epps
PVT Dinesh Rajbhandary
... brave men, killed in Grenada
PVT Van Coast
SP4 Jerry Daves
MSGT Mike DeBlois
PVT Marty Denson
PFC Bill Gibbs
... the men of the 82nd Airborne who gave everything in Panama
2LT Kathy Sherry
WO2 George Swartzendruber
SP5 Otha Squires
SGT Bill Strehlow
FSGT Brian Scott
... good soldiers, good people, who did not come home from Desert Storm.
There are many whom I cannot name, because we served in a time of "peace" but were nonetheless fighting a war no one here knew about.
I rise and salute the well over two million men and women who served in the U.S. military during my 20-year career, over 60,000 of whom made the ultimate sacrifice.
I rise and salute my dad and his generation, the five million who went to war not knowing when -- or if -- they would come home, but knowing someone had to save the world. So they did, losing a half million of their comrades in doing so.
I rise and salute the men of Korea, the men and women of Iraqi Freedom, the men and women of Enduring Freedom, and all the men and women of the U.S. military who have served since the first shots fired at Lexington and Concord on April 18, 1775.
By the very hand of God, this nation was born. By the very hand of God, we have been allowed to enjoy the freedoms and blessings that man was meant to enjoy under the good will and purpose of Almighty God, not least of which is the freedom to worship Him openly, without fear, and with the true humility we have knowing it is only by His grace that such things are available to us.
But darkness grows and seeps over the land. We have not passed the torch, we have not handed off the baton. Our people no longer respect the sacrifices, the hardships, the difficulties that are required to maintain these freedoms.
Our time grows short. The fires of hell are being stoked, and will soon be unleashed on a world that does not know God, does not honor God, does not trust God. The men and women of our military have provided for us, for 240 years, freedom, safety, peace on our shores. This will soon come to an end. And then the Soldier's Prayer will be the prayer of us all.
Psalm 91, NASB
1 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
Will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say to the LORD, "My refuge and my fortress,
My God, in whom I trust!"
3 For it is He who delivers you from the snare of the trapper
And from the deadly pestilence.
4 He will cover you with His pinions,
And under His wings you may seek refuge;
His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark.
5 You will not be afraid of the terror by night,
Or of the arrow that flies by day;
6 Of the pestilence that stalks in darkness,
Or of the destruction that lays waste at noon.
7 A thousand may fall at your side
And ten thousand at your right hand,
But it shall not approach you.
8 You will only look on with your eyes
And see the recompense of the wicked.
9 For you have made the LORD, my refuge,
Even the Most High, your dwelling place.
10 No evil will befall you,
Nor will any plague come near your tent.
11 For He will give His angels charge concerning you,
To guard you in all your ways.
12 They will bear you up in their hands,
That you do not strike your foot against a stone.
13 You will tread upon the lion and cobra,
The young lion and the serpent you will trample down.
14 "Because he has loved Me, therefore I will deliver him;
I will set him securely on high, because he has known My name.
15 "He will call upon Me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble;
I will rescue him and honor him.
16 "With a long life I will satisfy him
And let him see My salvation."
Remember today those who have fallen, those you knew, those you did not.
Thank the next Soldier, Sailor, Marine, Airman, Coast Guardsman you see.
