Putin is Showing Terrible Ways to Try to Win a War. He has lost 9,000 soldiers in Just the First Week.

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Military news…

Russia Presses Invasion to Outskirts of Ukrainian Capital

Russian forces reached Kyiv’s outskirts Friday after airstrikes hit cities and military bases, sending in troops and tanks from three sides in a momentous invasion.

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Taiwan Reports Nine Chinese Aircraft in Defense Zone

Taiwan’s defense ministry on Thursday reported nine Chinese aircraft had entered its air defense identification zone within hours of Russia launching an invasion into Ukraine.

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173rd Airborne Brigade Battalion Heads to Latvia as Ukraine Comes Under Russian Attack

Paratroopers from the 173rd Airborne Brigade are deploying to Latvia as part of the NATO response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

(My church has a missionary there.)

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​​Above Ukraine, a Cold War Spy Plane Is Finally Tracking a Russian Invasion

Three decades after its first mission, an American spy plane has monitored Russian forces as they invade eastern Europe.

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NATO Activates 5,000-Strong Task Force For First Time

NATO on Friday activated a spearhead force in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, marking the first time in the alliance’s history the unit has been deployed in Europe.

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‘Tired, Exhausted’: Ukrainians Fleeing Invasion Have Nowhere to Go

A train station in Pzemysl, Poland, has been turned into a welcome center and temporary home for Ukrainians, mostly women and children, fleeing the Russian invasion. Polish officials said 100,000 people have crossed their border with Ukraine over the last three days.

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My take…

The Russian forces seem to be struggling. Many soldiers giving up. There is no gas for their convoys. They have staled on the road leading to the capital city. The tanks are also stuck in the mud.

Over 9,000 Russian soldiers have been killed. The people in Russia are protesting. They didn’t want this war.

Rumor has it that the generals of Russia are getting restless, and are finding ways to get rid of Putin.

The Ukrainian people are fighting back. Civilians have taken up arms and helping in the fighting. People from other countries are coming to help fight as well.

This could be a huge mistake that Putin has made.

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Here is another excerpt from my upcoming book, Signs of Hope for the Military: In and Out of the Trenches of Life.

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F.E.A.R:

(1) Forget Everything and Run or

(2) Face Everything and Rise.

The choice is yours.

Fear is one of the inevitable things a soldier has to face. I faced it a few times. The worst time was when I was on a plane ready to head to the Bay of Pigs. I was ready to serve my country, but not knowing what was going to happen caused the fear.

In the dictionary fear is described as:

  1. A distressing emotion aroused by impending danger, evil, or pain.
  2. Concern or anxiety.
  3. To be worried or afraid.
  4. Reverential awe, especially towards God.

All of us on that plane tried to hide our fear. We were supposed to be men and women. We were not supposed to think about what might happen to us. In reality we all thought about not returning home. We thought about loved ones. We thought about the unknown we were facing.

It is hard to face fear. John Wayne once said, “Courage is being scared to death, and saddling up anyway.” This is a man who played the parts of heroes all his life. Many of his films were military films.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt once said, “We have nothing to fear, but fear itself.” 

Fear isn’t something that is a cowardly act. It is an honest reaction to what is happening around us.

I have faced my own fears. I was within hours of my death when I was rushed to the hospital in an ambulance and had a quadruple by-pass surgery on my heart.

If you see a car coming at you head on while driving on a highway, you don’t act in a cowardly way, you react. You take action to save your own life.

If you feel you were fearful much too often while you served, don’t let that give you a feeling of failure on your part. It is an honest feeling that often brings out the best in people.

When you first decided to join the military, you knew there might be times of fear, and yet you still took the big step forward to serve. You should be very proud of your courage to do that, and realize that fear is just a part of living, not only in the military, but in everyday life.

IWILL

Start today to erase any guilt you may have had in your mind about any fear you may have faced in your service time in the military. Fear is a part of life, and it isn’t a shameful thing to try to hide. Just let it go, and be proud that you stepped up to serve your country. Many others didn’t do that. 

Think about this

Isn’t it great how brave we really are once we face fear?

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Come back often to see more excerpts. Better yet…go to the top of this page and click on Subscribe. When you do all future posts will go directly to you inbox.

(Just do it.)

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Checking in on you…How are you doing? Are you struggling with memories?

FEAR NOT!

There are over 14,070 fellow veterans here who have your back. (We increased by 56 since Monday. Pretty exciting. )

If you are battling mentally, because of your love for others, but it isn’t working, GET HELP!!

Here is a toll free number that you can call 24/7. There are highly qualified counselors there to help you, and they will no hang up until they know you are OK.

1-800-273-8255…texting 838255

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Remember:

You are never alone.

You are never forsaken.

You are never unloved.

And above all…never, ever, give up!

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Woudn’t it be Great if we Could See the Future?

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Another shocking announcement! ( That got your attention!) “Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World, ” is now out in eBook form. I You can acquire it at all the eBook outlets. It is only $4.99 compared to $19.99 in the bookstores. Help it climb the www.amazon.com best selling list. You can even order it right from this site by clicking on the Amazon icon on the right.

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I have a podcast here that I did with John Kremer, the marketing guru. He invited me to share unusual places to sell books. Take a listen and hit those streets running: goo.gl/WGTF7

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I have a signing coming up on August 24th that runs for 11 straight days to September 3rd. It is at the Oregon State Fair, in Salem, Oregon. There is an author’s table in the AmeriCraft building, which was once called the Jackman-Long building. I will be there from 10:00am-9:00pm everyday. Come out and say hi if you life close.

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Thoughts just for you…

I had the privilege to be at the birth of a new nephew last night. He is 8# and 8 oz. He let everyone know he is around right away. He yelled at us for a long time. 🙂

Birth of a new child, for anyone, is a blessed event. It shares a new beginning. It gives us hope of a bright future for the little one.

Can we be assured that Braden will have a bright future. There is turmoil in our world today. We have many people threatened, or even killed in places like Syria.

The economy is flat, and there doesn’t seem to be a change in the horizon. People are out of jobs, out of health insurance, and out of mind.

How can we be assured of a bright future for anyone with all this happening around us?

If we truly believe in God, we know we have a bright future. He is in control. Yes, it seems He is allowing the bad guys to rule right now, but God never makes mistakes. He knows the final chapter of the book He is writing. The outcome is already written down.

It would be great if we could do like some people do while reading books. They sneak a peak at the ending of the book to see what happens. 

We can’t, but we know that God will conquer all the evil, and send His only Son down to earth to rule again. That is the bright future we can promise for little Braden. He will know that he is safe in the arms of our heavenly Father.

Remember:

You are not alone.

You are not forsaken.

You are not unloved.

Above all..never, ever, give up!

If Sin Seperates U From God, Why not Seperate us From Sin?

Why Does God Let Tragedy Happen?

 

Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.

Proverbs 29:25

There are some thoughts/questions people have asked me. I have even asked questions myself. It is very hard to see why so many people must be sacrificed, for no apparent reason. Why would God allow this to happen?

It seems like God has forsaken us sometimes when a tragedy happens. The major tragedy that happened in New York City, on September 11, 2001 makes us ask questions.

Terrorists hijacked four airplanes and attempted to crash them into important buildings. Three of the planes succeeded in crashing into the World Trade Center twin towers and the Pentagon building, killing over 3,000 people. The fourth one, because of the heroics of the passengers aboard, crashed near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, killing all 38 aboard.

Why did God allow this kind of horrible event? Why would He let His children die? Why didn’t He stop the terrorists from carrying out such a horrific deed?

The answer isn’t simple, but we learn in the Bible that God gives us choices. He gives us the freedom to choose what we will be in life. He lets us rise up and be leaders that are admired by millions, but He also allows people the choice of evil. Satan is alive and well, trying to get mankind to choose evil. That is why there was Hitler, former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, and Stalin. God, in His love for us, gives us the choice of our path, and then we become accountable for our choices. Man had to be given a free will, because love is a choice and can only be possible where man is free to choose.

So, if sin can separate me from God, why doesn’t He separate me from sin? Because God chose. He chose to create the heavens and the earth. He chose to create oceans and the mountains, and He chose to create Adam and Eve. He created them in His own image and also gave them the right to choose, just like He does.

He is like a father or mother would be like on earth. Parents tell their children what is wrong and what is right. Then they watch over their offspring, hoping they make the right choices and never disobey. If children make a mistake, they have to face the consequences at a later time from their parents.

God didn’t make us to be robots. We each have our own decision-making process. We can accept God, or reject Him. We can obey God, or obey Satan. We can give up the things of the world, or we can become part of the world. God loves us so much He allows us freedom of choice. He loves us as we are, but He just doesn’t want us to stay that way.

It seems hard to accept death, even though it may be the death of a loved one. God loves us all, and He will comfort us through the hard times of losing someone, even though it hurts so badly.

Try to comprehend why God allows people like terrorist to be on this earth, and then make the right choices in your own life.

 

For men are not cast off by the Lord forever. Though he brings grief,he will also show compassion, so great is his unfailing love. For he does not willingly bring affliction or grief to the children of men.

Lamentations 3:31–33

 

Further adventures

Be a help to those who are confused about why God allows things to happen in the world. Try to let them know of His love and how He allows us to make our own choices. This may help many people if you just do this one thing.

 

Something to ponder

Isn’t it funny how we forget God when everything is going well, but cry out to Him when we are hurting?

* Excerpt from: Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World