Ministry Helps Soldiers Cope this Holiday

This Christmas many have been chipping in to bring a little joy to America's armed forces serving overseas. But one ministry is working to make sure that the spirit of Christmas and the hope it brings will sustain our troops well beyond the holidays. Campus Crusade's military ministry offers Bible resources, marriage and family seminars, as well as help for post-traumatic stress disorder. "We can make a difference," said retired General Bob Dees, who directs the ministry. "We think many hands makes light work and what our nation needs most at this point in our history is to rally around our troops to help them heal the wounds of war." But their biggest push this Christmas is to send out 10,000 Bible packets, plus 100,000 psalm 91 books that feature firsthand stories from the front lines. Over 1,000 chaplains request materials from the group on a regular basis. And they make sure the chaplains have what they need to minister to the troops. "It is a great privilege living in this country because of their sacrifice. So we think we need to give troops - particularly at Christmas time - the best gift which is God's Word. So we're rapidly sending out Rapid Response Kits. It's a Bible in a waterproof bag, How to Know God Personally and a Daily Bread," Dees said. All of this wouldn't be possible without military ministry's volunteers. Nearly 100 people come regularly throughout the week to pack Bibles and prepare boxes for shipment. These dedicated men and women know the difference it makes in the lives of military men and women. "When you're serving in a foreign country overseas you're lonely. You have friends there and you get letters from home, but it's still lonely so the more contact you have the better it is. And anything you get from someone back in the states just makes you feel good," volunteer Larry Woolfson said. Another volunteer, Louis Trojak said, "It's impacted us because my husband and I were in the military for 27 years. This is just a way for us to continue helping our military men and women." "I would ask our nation and our viewers to wrap their arms of love and compassion and of Jesus Christ around our Military Men and Women particularly this Christmas."