Today is Veteran’s Day, a day to honor and acknowledge all those who served in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, National Guard, Coast Guard. Their sacrifice and that of their families should be greatly appreciated by all.
I often think of my father on Veteran’s Day, even though he was not a veteran. He tried to enlist during WWII but was told he had a talent needed elsewhere. He was a shipfitter. He worked in the Philadelphia Naval Yard and when the war was winding down on that front, moved to California to work in the Vallejo Naval Yard. He told us once that when the ships came limping in from Pacific battles, often bodies were still contained in compartments that had been sealed off. He said he still remembered opening those compartments.
My dad’s service in WWII was not readily seen but vitally important. Without people like him who built and repaired, the soldiers on the frontline would have been unable to do what they were called to do.
In the NT you can find lists of gifts. You will find them in Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12, Ephesians 4 and 1 Peter 4. Some of those gifts are resident in us, some of them are resident in the Holy Spirit who indwells us and makes them available to us as needed.
Paul reminds us that while we all have different gifts “one and the same Spirit is active in all these, distributing to each person as He wills.” [1 Corinthians 12:11 HCSB]
Some of our gifts are exercised in front of people where all can see … like those veterans who served on the frontlines. Some of us have gifts that work behind the scenes, gifts that may not be readily seen … like my dad who repaired ships. Yet the Spirit of God is active in every gift, and He is the One who determines which gift we have.
Today I honor my dad and those who served as he did. Not veterans but people who served this country quietly in ways not always seen by others.
