Soldier from Snellville, GA laid to rest

SNELLVILLE, GA: Bill And Suzanne Ayers are presented with an American flag in honor of their son, Cpl. Jon Ayers, during the military burial service at Eternal Hills Memory Gardens.

You may be wondering why I would post about a fallen hero in Georgia when I live in Indiana. Well, this post is being done because my dear friends in Georgia, Tailgunner and Lynette shared with me details, via TG’s letter of thanks to law enforcement. I wanted to take the time to show a part of this country where honor and respect still is displayed and good people come together to comfort the family of an honored hero, a hero who has died fighting terrorism for every one of us. Thank you and Rest in Peace Corporal Ayers, your duty is done. May you rest in the comfort of our Lord’s eternal love.

From: Tailgunner [email address ommitted]
Sent: Sun 7/20/2008 10:57 AM
To: Conway, Butch
Subject: ATTN: Sheriff Butch Conway

Dear Sheriff Conway

This morning my fiancee and I had the honor and privilege of being part
of the escort of the body of Corporal Jonathan Ayers.

We, along with 165 other motorcycles in the Patriot Guard Riders, staged
at the small airport in Lawrenceville, GA, and formed a flag honor line
on the tarmac as his flag draped coffin was removed from the plane and
presented to his grieving family and friends. It was loaded onto the
hearse by a 6 member military honor guard while all the PGR members stood
at attention, most holding large (3′ X 5′) American flags in a ring around
the plane and the family.

From there each and every biker followed the hearse and the family for
approximately 15 miles in a 2 mile long procession from the airport to
the funeral home. An honor to participate? Yes – and the very, very least
we could do to honor this young man who gave his life for America – for
you and me. But that is only a small portion of the story.

Along the route from the airport to the funeral home, the Lawrenceville
Police and the Gwinnett County Sheriffs Department blocked off every
intersection so that we could all – all 2 miles of us – proceed
uninterrupted in our honor escort. But there is more. So much more.

En route, there were many, many groups of people – some small, some
fairly large. Old, young, grandparents with their grandkids, parents
with their children, elderly people standing – some in small groups,
others alone. Virtually each and every one of them held an American flag
and stood at attention with their hands over their hearts as the long
procession passed. But there’s more yet.

On the opposite side of the roads we took – most of which were 4 lane
divided highways, people – Americans – pulled off to the side of the
road and stood outside their vehicles, hands over their hearts, as the
funeral procession for Corporal Ayers passed. Some even stopped their
cars or trucks in the middle of the street and stood next to their car
at attention, hand over their heart. No one, and I mean NO one, honked
their horn to get the person in front of them going or out of frustration
for being “held up”. Not one single beep.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s
Department Department, and especially the officers who provided escort
to the grief stricken family and the Patriot Guard Riders for their time
and service to the community. I am sure at least some of these officers
were off duty at the time but chose, of their own volition, to donate
their time and professional expertise to this mission. Please convey my
personal, sincere, and heartfelt thanks to them for not only a job well
done, but for their patriotism as well.

How desperately I wish Nancy Pelosi, Barack Obama, Harry Reid, Barbara Boxer,
Hillary Clinton, John Murtha, Teddy Kennedy, and a host of other Washington
“surrender now” elites could have seen all of this today. I doubt it would
have changed their minds, but it would certainly let them know how far
out of touch they are with the American people and with reality.

God bless America, and may God bless you and your officers for their unselfish
service. Thank you.

Tailgunner, Stone Mountain, GA
Proud Member, Patriot Guard Riders
Proud American

My friend Tailgunner received a very nice email response from the Sheriff, which follows:

From: Butch Conway
To: Tailgunner
Sent: Sunday, July 20, 2008 11:04:18 AM
Subject: RE: ATTN: Sheriff Butch Conway

Wow. Bart, what a great letter. Please don’t let it end with me, the papers
need to get a copy of it. Thanks so much for sending it to me, I assure
you it will be kept and published in our next department newsletter. If
I can ever be of assistance please don’t hesitate to let me know.

Butch

I am posting this because I get tired of reading about what the Marxist, retarded Code Pinkos do in the press. They have taken protesting a War to protesting and trying to dishonor our troops. There are many who don’t know all the personal sacrifices our law enforcement officers make to keep us all safe, and the things they do on their own time for the communities they serve. There are still people around who care and appreciate all the sacrifices military members and their families make for this country. Thanks to all who choose to serve.

Daily Reflection and Prayer

From the High Calling of our Daily Work:

Daily Reflection

BY Mark D. Roberts, Laity Lodge Senior Director and Scholar-in-Residence

Demanding a Sign

READ Matthew 16:1-12

“Only an evil, adulterous generation would demand a miraculous sign, but
the only sign I will give them is the sign of the prophet Jonah.” Then
Jesus left them and went away.

Matthew 16:4

When Jesus failed to live up to the messianic expectations of the Jewish
leaders, they demanded him to show a miraculous sign (as if he hadn’t
done plenty already!). Jesus rejected their demand, though adding that
he would give “the sign of the prophet Jonah.” In Matthew 12:40, Jesus
explained that this sign was his resurrection. Even as Jonah was in the
belly of the fish for three days, so Jesus would be in the earth. But then,
like Jonah, he would be miraculously brought back into this world.

It’s terribly easy for us to think we can set the terms of our relationship
with Jesus. We decide the hoops he needs to jump through, and then we tell
him to jump in our prayers. If Jesus doesn’t come through for us, we can
question his goodness, even his existence. Our challenge is to accept Jesus
on his terms and to receive the revelation he has given to us.

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION: Have there ever been times in your life when you
wanted God to make himself known to you in a miraculous way? What happened?
How do you maintain your faith in God when he doesn’t respond to your agenda?

PRAYER: Dear Lord, I can imagine how readily I would have fallen in with
the religious leaders. Believing in you is hard sometimes, and I wouldn’t
mind an extra sign or two along the way. Of course, you have made your
presence and power known to me throughout my life. But, still, I can come
to you demanding more.

Help me, Lord, to believe in you on the basis of what you have done in
history and in my own life. When I doubt, remind me of all the ways you
have revealed yourself, most of all in Jesus, and in his resurrection.
May my faith in you be rock solid as I base it upon you.    Amen.