Watchman
This is what the Lord says to me: “Go, post a watchman and have him report what he sees.”
Isaiah 21:6
As he began the first fold in the flag, the SWAT commander reflected on his friend’s life. Words like duty and honor immediately came to mind—never taken lightly, rarely spoken of, silently understood. The man being laid to rest was a husband, father, brother, son, and friend. He was a fifteen-year veteran who had laid down his life during the performance of his duties; a veteran whose thoughts were unlike the average civilian’s. Upon entering any structure, business, or residence, he noted every door and surveillance camera. He formulated plans for every scenario. He determined how he would respond if someone entered with criminal intent, because he was always thinking about the safety of others.
Drawn from his thoughts by the twenty-one-gun salute, the commander was intensely aware that he would rather have been anywhere but here. But, doing what he would always do under difficult circumstances, he put aside his emotion, and performed his duties. He had come here today to honor and pay tribute to a fallen comrade; nothing would deter him. Then he’d get back on the wall; entrusted with the freedom of others.
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Jesus said, “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” His revelation to his disciples was about duty and honor in love. It was about loving others in a way that places their welfare ahead of our own, suffering temporarily, so that they might be safe.
Jesus was the perfect example. He suffered death on a cross so that we might be saved. The battleground was Gethsemane. Bent by anguish beyond our comprehension, wishing to be anywhere but there at that moment, He submitted to the Father’s will. In that garden, Jesus showed us how to choose to defend the innocent over personal comfort. He rose up from praying and hung on the cross of Calvary—a wall no other could ever stand upon; offering a freedom no one else can provide.
Prayer
“Jesus, my Savior, thank You for choosing to die so that I might live. I ask Your protection over those who do as you did, to stand on the wall so that others might live. Amen.”
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