Commitment

Not new, but accurate, information from the Iraq War is summed up in a report from NBC’s Brian Williams:
1. 750 injuries monthly (2-07);
2. Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) possibly 1825;
3. 23,000 injuries (non-fatal casualties,205,000 treating in VA facilities at that time, plus 72,000 mental health patients (Bob Woodward);
4. 754,000 homeless people, 1/3rd being families with children (Brian Williams);
5. 300,000 more people than VA beds seeking help (Bob Woodward).

Such information is old hat with us. We take it for granted, all the way from war abroad to neighborhood violence. Our world pays a terribly high price for our low level of living. Without turning to further sources, Iraq offers more than 2,754,750 reasons for advocating more actively for the common good of humanity.

As we wrap up the (Iraq) war, we ramp up another--Afghanistan. Further conflicts confront us elsewhere--already responsible for cleaning up some of the other political messes we have made.

The bottom line calls for every citizen to become pro-active in building new and better relationships in our world. The one sure way to eliminate enemies is to build constructive friendships; that calls for less hostility and more mutual sharing.

Edward Kennedy was a man who had the best of everything. In that, he found strength to take on what he felt was his moral responsibility--improve life for those less fortunate. Thus, he became the face of Health Care Reform. While watching the reviews of Kennedy’s death, I heard the recurring phrase “moral responsibility” as a driving force in his life.

Not everyone agreed with the Senator; some wrote him off with distracting designations. He failed miserably at times in his personal life. Yet, through his Catholic Faith, and fortitude,this man focused on and found a level of redemption by focusing on the needs of others.

The Christian faith calls us to live our lives responsibly--mutually accountable to each other. Jesus taught us to love others as we love ourselves. He invites us to live with that commitment until we stand before Almighty God--for the common good.

Foy Valentine, a great Southern Baptist preacher-author, valued this word “commitment.” We need, wrote Valentine, to make our world a better place in which to live, admitting his greatest concern was our commitment. He concluded: “My concern is that we shall one day stand before the Judgment seat of Christ and in shame be forced to confess to Him who has the print of nails in His hands that we were not outnumbered but out committed.” (Valentine/THE CROSS IN THE MARKETPLACE/Word/1966/73).

From Walking with Warner, this is Wayne,
pressing forward with commitment...