Please open your eyes.

So its early morning and I'm still really tired. I've been sick the past few days, I am trying to sit up more so my lungs to go flying out of my chest from coughing so hard. The sun is starting to sparkle and it just felt right to write out some thoughts as best I can. If I tend to skip around please bare with me.

Thoughts:

I've really have been wondering about the condition of our world, more so on a level of awareness as to what is happening around us. Do we even realize how good we have it? I don't ever want to not show regard for someone's pain. But please hear me out.

We all have are own pain and daily struggle to fight against, but in the same breath we also have a roof over our heads, a clean bed to sleep in, (I hope) the ability to eat whenever we please, a hot shower whenever desired and the list could go on and on.

So why then when life kicks us in the teeth, we feel like the entire earth is falling down around us? Seriously, think about this with me. Every single person is guilty of this, and that is said in love and with honesty.

I was watching this movie series called "Generation Kill" last night, and its based off the war we are in at this moment. I watched with intent, my eyes and spirt were searching for any hint of truth and mercy it could lock onto.

There was one part in the episode where a family was dragging their wounded son, in a blanket. They dragged him to where the troops were resting and re-grouping as a team. When one soldier saw the family, five of them rushed to see what was going on.

The little boys mom was just a mess, she was just sobbing and it sounded as if she was praying. The boy had be hit three times in the stomach, if something was not done as soon as possible he was going to die. And that family would also loose a son.

So the medic did all he could to comfort and make sure the boys vital signs were stable. While the other troops tried to radio for evacuation be Helicopter, they could not get through to their commander.

This boy, this human being was struck by a Marine who was following orders from his commander also. The Marine was there with the medic, he confessed to what he had to done and pleaded to offer and help he could. The rest of the troops were angry, every moment was so important for this kids life.

So they set out with the boy on a stretcher and the family trailing behind, they carried the boy to their commanders tent who was not answering his head set. They set the boy down and the family kneeled beside him and held his bloody hands and wept and wailed.

The commander finally came out and the first words that came out of his mouth were, "What the hell is this?" the medic who tended to the boys needs said slowly: "we brought this boy here so he could die."

Their commander was silent, then he pulled the troops over to the side. He began to tell the platoon that helicopter evacuation was very dangerous and two were just shot down the night before. He said the the second option was to send a truck to drive the boy to the nearest hospital.

The catch was that that truck would drive through one of the most dangerous war zones to be under attack. This meant that the boy might not even make it. So here is this fragile situation where humanity and flesh and blood, making a very bold statement.

I could sense that the heart of these soldiers were going out to this family, they wanted to offer this young boy every chance at life they could. Even if it meant their own death. It dawn on that once again life is stronger than death.

Here in this blood bathed battle ground, for a few minutes it is not us versus them. It is about human being meets human being. Sometimes when we are faced with our own war we become so aware of ourselves that we fail to keep are hearts softened to the conditions of another's life, needs and the battle they face.

Let us not loose ourselves in ourselves. Please lets open our eyes to our entire world and all people, not just our lives and what we are comfortable with. I know that may seem a bit harsh and it very well may be, but please open up your eyes and see that this word needs you.

The love of God does not require us to do huge things. It begs of us to do small things with great love. Let us also learn to be ourselves and not try and copy others, we were made originals and not carbon copies of another person.

I truly believe that our world can change. But you know what the truth is? It probably won't make CNN, the violence will be the main attraction. But the little things that people won't. I'm sorry to say that but its true.

As Shane Claiborne put it we are going to grow smaller and smaller until we change the world. And I hope that disturbs you, because it does me. This means that are perspectives must change inwardly.

The way we view recognition must change, this is something that I fight against because it feels good to be noticed, it feels good to have people say nice things about us. But is there really any good in it?

We don't need bigger buildings, large followings or mass exposure. Sure there is good in all of that, but what we really need is to always learn to keep are hearts in the right place and always let are minds be transformed by the renewing of our minds.

This is how I believe Jesus would want it to be, and I honestly believe that he doesn't care about how big your thing gets. What I believe he cares the most about, is wether or not we are letting his love and mercy be at work in our lives and are that we are doing all we can to show his mercy in small doses to this world.

We are all broken and sick, if you didn't know. Some may have it worse than others. But we are alive and are only just starting to make a a flame arise from the darkness. This will create a flame that will we be very hard to put out as long as we are adding fuel to the fire.

Brandon-The Writer