"There, but for the grace of God, go I"

I read an article this morning about a U.S. Army sergeant who was on the brink of being discharged from the Army for interfering with an Afghan official who had been serially molesting young boys. Fortunately, military justice seems to have been prodded into good sense and the soldier will be allowed to stay in service.

I asked a veteran who served in Afghanistan how widespread this sort of behavior was there, and he said it was an everyday occurrence. Sometimes Afghan soldiers and police did it under the guise of interrogation. "Might makes right" is the norm over there.

America is an incredible place. Our founding fathers understood the nature of man as described in the Bible. They understood the depravity of man, and that man unrestrained follows the strongest impulses of his nature - pride, greed and lust.

For this reason our founders placed strict limits on the government, intended to restrain these excesses of man's nature. Yet even they understood that the form of government they gave us would only work with a moral people, a people who understood and followed the principles of the Bible.

The article reminded me of the old saying, "There, but for the grace of God, go I". Have you ever pondered how supremely fortunate you are to have been born in America? Why me? Why was I not born in some other land? Why was I not subjected to the same sort of experiences others endure?

Inscrutable are the ways of God. Romans 9:20-21 says "Nay but, oh man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to Him that formed it, why hast thou made me thus? Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honor, and another unto dishonor?"  And in Romans 11:33 - "O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments, and His ways past finding out!"

The sovereignty of God in all things is a difficult thing to comprehend, but is a wonderful truth. We should be grateful every day for the mercy God showed in placing us where we were born and for the salvation He so freely gives, unworthy though we are.

God placed you where you are for a reason, and for reasons known only to Him. What are you doing about it?