Day 36- Blessed to be a Blessing

Verse of the Day:
"I will make you into a great nation
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing. Genesis 12:2

God promises to bless us so that we can become a blessing to others. It is quite a call. We need to remember that what we do for others should be out of thanksgiving for what God has done for us.

Today's gift for me was different. I listen to 1210am in the morning and the radio host was sharing a story about a young man named Matthew Snyder who was killed in Iraq on March 3, 2006. At his funeral a group from the Westboro Baptist Church lead by a man named Fred Phelps held a demonstration against Matthew. They had signs with ugly statements that were untrue and hurtful. Their purpose is to use the forum of soldier's funerals to gain attention to their cause to make the world understand that God is killing our young men because of the evil ways we live.
They also believe that God flew the planes into the World Trade Center. Matthew was not evil and didn't live an evil life. He was 20 years old and serving his country - he died a hero. Matthew's dad has sued Mr. Phelps and the Westboro Church to help to prevent them from hurting other grieving parents. He won and then the case was overturned on appeal. It is now a first amendment case being argued before the supreme court in October.

I am offended by people who don't understand the call to love your neighbor and to be a blessing to others. Hate never wins! It gives the church a bad name and hurts the cause of winning people to Christ. We should all be indignant.
If Matthew's dad loses he will be responsible for the entire court costs. My gift today was to help by donating to the defense fund. If you are interested the website is www.MatthewSynder.org.