Happy Canada Day!

July 1. The day we celebrate our country, and how truly blessed we are to live in it.

Just last night I was chatting with some friends of ours about how good we have it here and how there are many people who are completely oblivious to how spoiled we are.

I haven't travelled a lot, but I went to Croatia twice on short term missions trips not long after the Balkan war. My world view changed on those trips. People are the same everywhere. God chose to put me in Canada, but I could have grown up in Croatia instead. What different experiences I would have had by this point in my life.

Imagine waking up in the middle of the night to the sound of tanks and guns and explosions, and grabbing a couple of things and running out your back door and running for your life. Praying that you and your family will survive.

Imagine not being able to take your children to the playground because they haven't swept it for land mines yet, and just last week, a child from down the street lost both their legs from stepping on a land mine in a field.

Imagine your spouse leaving and taking your child because suddenly, their cultural identity put them on the opposite side of the war from you.

-- I just can't imagine that happening here.

Am I just sheltered? Have I lived a fairytale life where those kinds of things just don't happen? I guess so. I grew up in Canada.

Just look around. Look at the shopping malls and the grocery stores and the many, many nice vehicles driving around. Look at all the things we take for granted: street lights that work; wide roads with smooth pavement; vast forests, huge mountains, many rivers with plenty of wildlife (have you looked at a map of Canada and noticed how much is wilderness?); phones that work all the time; fresh clean water from our taps; freedom to meet together and worship the God who created us. There are so many things that we consider 'normal', that simply aren't normal for a great number of people in this world.

No, I'm not saying Canada's perfect. There are many things wrong with our country as with all places. But, today, on Canada Day, we should be thinking of all that's good and strong and right about our country. We should put away the complaining and whining and count our many blessings. After all, if you don't like it here, there are plenty of other places that will take you.

And many, many people who want to be here.