I spent Monday and Tuesday of this week at the United states of america Military Academy at West Point in New York. My daughter is being recruited towards the softball team there, and we went for an official check out, in order that she could verify out the place, the culture and the facilities.
Quite honestly, I was blown away. It far exceeded my expectations.
Many have heard of West Point, but may well not know its origin. It can be the nation's oldest military outpost, and thus, it has observed numerous national dignitaries in its background, such as a year-long stay by George Washington. It can be situated on land perched above the Hudson River, along with the entire region and views are gorgeous. A lot of the buildings have gothic architecture, so they appear like a thing you'd see in Europe, not America. I could go on and on about the history and grandeur of West Point, but there was in fact one thing much more striking about it that was unseen.
Honor. West Point has a motto that you simply see emblazoned in distinctive locations around the post: "Duty, Honor, Country." It is portion of its coat of arms, and can be seen inside the stained glass of its exquisite Cadet Chapel, on the floor in 1 of its buildings, and most mainly, inside the faces in the cadets that walk quietly and respectfully across the campus.
There is an entirely diverse air on the West Point campus than you'll see on typical college campuses. The cadets are clad in uniform, and you won't see a single cellular phone held as much as their ears, and no ipods. They're not allowed to make use of their cell phones between classes, and so from breakfast till 3:00 p.m., they're focused on their classes.
The campus has a reverent quiet to it, which does not mean that the students are somber. Many of them are greeting one another and some laugh and talk together. But there's a clear distinction that shows that every single person honors and respects the other, and also a feeling of brotherhood and sisterhood abounds.
As we walked by means of the many buildings on campus, including the library, the Hall of Fame, the athletic facilities and the dining hall (which appears very a lot like Hogwarts' dining hall), everything was spotless, spit-shined and gleaming. Not a single piece of gum was ground into the concrete, not a single mark was on the walls, not a single piece of trash littered the campus, not a single careless ugly word was heard. And you are able to bet that "Yes Sir" and "Yes Ma'am" are now a very normal portion of their vocabulary.
When we had been given the tour by the softball assistant coaches, we went into a constructing using a long hall and a lot of classes on every single side of the hall. Down the length of each hall were coat hooks exactly where the cadets hung their matching coats, and beneath each coat was a backpack. The assistant coach told us that no one ever has to worry about leaving their backpack within the hallway since honor is such an essential part of the West Point culture.
Honor. It was clear that the cadets are expected to honor their surroundings, the facilities, themselves and one another. Along with the outcome is anything otherworldly, nearly heavenly. Certain, the youngsters there are actually genuine. They've got their stuff. But when they are held to higher standards, they buck up and meet these expectations-primarily, I think, due to the fact they see the outcome. They feel and see the difference inside the environment. They realize that it's a location set apart from the rest of the planet, and they are blessed to be a portion of it.
Honor is often a significant element of your Biblical vocabulary. God tells us to honor our parents,submiminal message therapy waves, the aged and also the sabbath. Paul tells us to feel upon what is true and honorable. God told Eli, "...people who honor Me I'll honor, and people who despise me are going to be lightly esteemed." (1 Samuel 2:30b) God's approaches, if we would but follow them,subliminal spanish download free, have lovely results.
Let's return to a life of honor. Let's honor our magnificent God, one another, our God-given possessions, and the possessions of other folks. Let's be honorable in each way, so that we can bring somewhat bit of heaven to this broken world.
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