Because not everyone will be home this Christmas

November 15, 2008

A few days ago I received an email from a reader named Amanda. Her husband is in the Army and currently in the midst of a 15 month deployment. They have two young children and in her email she said that although it is often difficult, they know it’s the path to which they’ve been called.

Amanda and her Bible study group came up with the idea to collect 2000 Christmas cards to send to the families of deployed soldiers from Fort Sill. They are calling the effort “Dear Army Family”. They are hoping that each family will receive a card that reminds them that someone across the country values their sacrifice and is remembering their family through this Christmas season.

This is an excerpt from the letter she sent me that outlines the program.

“Our goal is to send an extra Christmas card to each family of a deployed soldier on our post. We are hoping to encourage those that are walking through a particularly difficult time of deployment.

We want each family to know that the sacrifice they have offered is cherished. We are hoping for a personal note in each card.

Please include words of gratitude as well as words of encouragement. We want Army families to know they are being thought of across this country; that their sacrifice is important, and that they are being covered in prayer.

Please pray for the family as you seal their envelope, knowing with certainty that God knows exactly which family will receive your card. Continue to pray for the families throughout the holiday season. Ask God to bring them to your mind throughout the festivities. You will bring blessings to these homes.

We are striving to get 2000 cards! In order to do this efficiently, we are unable to give out personal contact information for the Army Families. Once the cards are returned, we will be addressing the cards and will use our own return address.

Please include your hometown & state with your signature inside your card, this will ensure that Army Families know people across America are praying for them and thinking of them. You may include a return address inside the card as well, but this is not required. Thank you for joining us in such a big undertaking. One extra Christmas card combined with the love of Jesus, just might change a life.

A few reminders:

1. Write “Dear Army Family” in the greeting of the card

2. Please include a personal greeting inside each card. Include your hometown & state.

3. Please STAMP the envelopes! You may send all the stamped cards in one large envelope or box to save on shipping.

4. Please return cards by December 1, 2008.

5. Please mail the cards to the following address:

Dear Army Family
Fort Sill – PWOC Frontier Chapel
4121 Thomas Road
Fort Sill, OK 73503

Thank you,

Amanda

“Like cold water to a weary soul, so is good news from a distant land.” Proverbs 25:25

These families will be without their spouses, mothers, fathers, brothers or sisters this Christmas season and I think this is such an incredible way to say thank you for the sacrifices they have made on our behalf. It’s a simple way to say we don’t take the sacrifice for granted.