Colateral Damage

Colateral Damage
I heard a sermon this morning about the battle currently being fought in the Heavenlies between Good and Evil. Right now, our country is at war in the mid-east. I couldn't help but be impressed with the 'other victims' in wars.

The military calls it collateral damage. Those involved in this type of assault are the innocents. In war, it's when a bomb hits the known location of a terrorist, and accidently kills the little girl next door. It was our planes taking out German munitions plants, and killing the mom who worked there to feed her children after her husband died. It's a drunk driver killing a car filled with folks on their way home from school or work. Collateral loses, are those who have nothing in the battle, who may have no opinion on who is wrong or right, and are completely uninvolved with the war, who are harmed because of the battles around them.

In the current spiritual wars, it's still the innocents. If a husband has a one night stand, and brings a disease home to his wife, she is collateral damage. In all the hurt and anger in a divorce, children are the collateral damage.

In every conflict, there are innocent mothers, fathers, children, husbands and wives. I think sometimes we spend so much time focusing on who is right and who is wrong that we forget to extend out love and support those who just happened to be there when the battle began.

As Christians, we are told that it isn't "the evil that goes into a man's body that defiles him, but the evil that comes out." (Matthew) Collateral damage is going to happen, but can be lessoned by remembering that there are innocents involved in every conflict, and that they are the ones most in need of our prayers.