January Newsletter

MilitaryMoms.net newsletter 04

Welcome to Military Moms Newsletter!

As many of our loved ones return home, many of our loved ones have received deployment orders recently.
This issue will focus on this issues of deployment as well as others.

Armies may surrounded me, but I won't be afraid; war may break out, but I will trust you.
~ Psalms 27.3

Tips for loved ones ( Wives, Moms, Dad, Grandparents and etc) of Redeployed Loved ones:

Even when the war is over, stress and uncertainty can require the skills of resilience both from those coming home and from those who stayed home. Resilience is defined as the ability to adapt well in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats, or other significant sources of stress.

MM'S is partnered with Military Ministries - they have some help if you need it - link is at the bottom or the front page of MM'S.

Return and Re-entry

Deployments are finally ending for many. Along with the sighs of relief and the prayers of thanks, there is the re-adjustment that comes after a long separation.

Experienced veterans of deployments know that even though it's great to be back home, the return to "normal" means the family patterns set up during the deployment need to be shifted once again. That is not always an easy task.

The American Psychological Association provides some very good homecoming advice on their website. It's incomplete, though--the spiritual dimension should also be included.
Please click the link to read some really good info. This site is a must read for family members.
HOMECOMING: RESILIENCE AFTER WARTIME

Homecoming can be a great time to begin or revive family customs and practices that will spiritually strengthen you and make your whole family better able to handle stresses like readjustment. Activities such as...

Praying together
Reading God's Word as a family
Attending church or chapel
Starting or joining a Homebuilders® Couples Study
Attending a Military Marriage Seminar
Going through Moments Together for Couples together ... help to give families a stronger foundation, spiritually and otherwise.

Our Family Ministries team is always eager to help--please feel free to contact us!

Military Ministry
6060 Jefferson Avenue, Suite 6012
Newport News, VA 23605
1-800-444-6006

http://www.milmin.com/index.htm

Tips for loved ones ( Wives, Moms, Dad, Grandparents and etc) of Deployed Loved ones:

Stay busy with the kids and or other family members. Time seems to go by faster if you’re involved with projects. Get the kids started with sports teams, dance classes, after-school activities, church groups, etc.

Try to maintain a positive attitude. Your children need some stability in their lives right now, so you need to do your best to maintain the “status quo” for them as much as possible. When you write letters to your loved one, try to keep a positive outlook for them as well. Studies have shown that soldiers can perform their jobs much more effectively if they know you’re taking care of things at home.

Listen to what “unspoken” messages your children may be giving you. They may start acting inappropriately when Daddy is gone, their grades may drop in school, and they may have social troubles. These are unspoken signs that they’re having trouble with Dad’s absence. Deal with disciplinary problems appropriately, but try to understand they don’t have the emotional tools they need to voice their fears, frustrations, and worries. Spend some extra “snuggle” time with your kids; let them know you love them and you’re taking care of them. Talk about some of the fun things you plan to do when Daddy returns home. Your children’s teachers and school counselors have many resources available to help you and your child during the separation.

Make use of the various agencies on post designed to help families during this time. Because each branch is different, please make sure your loved one checks in to this before deployment.

Contact any Chaplain on base if you need spiritual help. Chaplains are ordained ministers, and they will listen to you and guide you through this difficult time. They can pray with you and give you other assistance you may not know is available.

Be sure and read RESILIENCE IN A TIME OF WAR

~ How lucky I am to have known someone who ~
was so hard to say goodbye to.

For lots of info on the Emotional Cycle of Deployment please click the link below.

The Emotional Cycle of Deployment: A Military Family Perspective

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What if I have an emergency at home?

First, decide if your situation is a true emergency. Children with ear infections, flat tires, money trouble, etc. are all nerve-wracking situations, but are not considered to be emergencies. These lesser situations can usually be handled without your husband’s, Son or Daughter's unit being notified. Work with the various local agencies, which are designed to help you during this stressful time.

If you truly have an emergency such as the death of a family member, serious car accident, robbery, life-threatening illness, etc. you should first contact your Loved one's Rear Detachment/Ombudsman/Liaison. They will tell you the best way to deal with the emergency, and they will work with you on your end to help resolve the situation. Rear Detachment may also need you to contact your local American Red Cross office. The Red Cross will need to get some information from you to verify the emergency, and they will assist you in contacting your soldier.

What the Bible Says About Fear:

Psalm 27:1-3 The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid? When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh, when my enemies and my foes attack me, they will stumble and fall. Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then will I be confident.

Isaiah 41:10 So do not fear, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

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What the Bible Says About Protection:

Proverbs 15:3 They eyes of the Lord are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the good.

Proverbs 14:32 When calamity comes, the wicked are brought down, but even in death the righteous have a refuge.

For Your Study: Read what the Scriptures say in 2 Samuel 22, Psalm 91 and 1 John 4:18.

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Tips for Personal Safety:

Many spouses get scared, or worse—careless—when their husbands are gone. Keep in mind the following advice—it’s just common sense for everyone.

1. BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU SAY TO OTHERS!!! This includes what you post on the MMs message board, chat room and what you say to your neighbors and friends. Remember the old slogan: Loose Lips Sink Ships. When you’re out talking with friends, be careful what others hear. If you’re in public, total strangers may hear your conversation, and they can get a lot of personal info without your knowledge. Don’t ever tell a stranger that your husband/son/boyfriend is deployed!

The Bible has a lot to say about “taming the tongue.” Proverbs 18:21 tells us “the tongue has the power of life and death.” James 3:5-10 shows us the power our tongues have, and how we must struggle to keep them under control.

**Mark Twain once said: Better to keep your mouth shut and let everyone think you’re a fool, than to say something stupid and remove all doubt.**

2. If you leave town, ALWAYS let someone know where you are going, with a contact phone number if possible. Ask the local police department to drive by your house more often to make sure it’s all right. Ask a TRUSTED friend to housesit, pick up your mail, turn on and off lights in your house, and move your car to different positions in the driveway.

3. Don’t go out at night. If you must run an evening errand, park your car in a well-lit area. ALWAYS keep your keys in your hand--don’t fumble around in the dark trying to find the car key. Also, a large car key makes an effective weapon if you run into trouble. ALWAYS be aware of your surroundings.

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I know this has been said before, but I wanted to post a reminder to all of the new members out there.

It’s ok to talk about your military sons and daughters because we are all very proud. Here are some important things you should NOT talk about:

1. DON’T give names / addresses / phone numbers to anyone you don’t know.

2. DON’T post addresses on any public site (not even Military Moms) this is a public site.

3. DON’T post any information about deployment, who/when/where.

4. DON’T post return from deployment information.

5. DON’T post information such as unit numbers, i.e., company, battalion, etc.

6. DON’T post anything on a public site that you would discuss only with your closest family members.

Sounds like a lot of DON’T do this stuff. It is SO important. I know we all want to talk about our military loved ones but we are obligated to protect them and keep certain information to ourselves.
~ Ranger Mom

Hem your blessings with thankfulness so they don't unravel.

Shine for JESUS ~

One of the very best ways to have confidence during these uncertain days is to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Have you accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Savior? During these scary times, the Lord can offer you peace beyond human understanding, but you MUST be His child if you wish to receive this wonderful peace. How do you become God’s child?

Have You Accepted God's Free Gift?

God loves you. He loves you and I so much ...that he gave his one and only Son,
that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16 NIV).
The Bible says in Romans 3:23 that all of us have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.
In other words, we have all missed the mark.
But if we will admit that we have sinned and confess our sins,
God is faithful and true to His word and will forgive us and wash us clean from
everything wrong that we've ever done (see 1 John 1:9).

If you have never invited Jesus to be your Lord and Savior, we invite you to do so now.
The Bible promises that when you pray a prayer like the one written here
from your heart, you will experience a new life in Christ.
Simply read it aloud and mean it from your heart. Say,

Father, I come to You just as I am. There is nothing I can do to earn salvation-
I cannot work my way into a right relationship with You.
The Bible says that we are saved by grace through faith as a gift from You.
I confess that I have sinned against You and others.
I ask You to forgive me and wash me clean with the precious,
life-giving blood of Jesus Christ, Your Son. I believe that He died for me -
He took my sin upon Himself and died on the cross for me.
And I believe that He was raised from the dead, giving me power over the enemy.
Jesus, I ask You to come live inside of me.
I don't understand everything about being a Christian,
but I invite You into my life to help me learn daily how I am to live.
Thank You, Father, for Your gift of restoration and eternal life.
I am so grateful for Your love and mercy.
In Jesus' name, amen.

See John 3:16; Ephesians 2:8,9; Romans 10:9,10; 1 Corinthians 15:3,4; 1 John 1:9; 4:14-16; 5:1,12,13.

If you just prayed that prayer, we’d LOVE to hear from you. Let us know, so we may congratulate you, and help you take the first steps of your new Christian life.

To meet the needs of the military families after one member has been deployed, the MILITARY MINISTRY of CAMPUS CRUSADE FOR CHRIST is spearheading an effort to create the "Heroes at Home Kit."

This valuable package contains a number of resources that have proven to be an encouragement to people facing important questions raised by the deployment of a spouse.

Each Heroes at Home Kit contains:

FREE BOOK Heroes at Home: Help & Hope for America's Military Families by Ellie Kay
FREE VIDEO "JESUS" This motion picture presentation of the life of Christ has been seen by more people in more places than any other film in history.
FREE BIBLE New Testament with Psalms and Proverbs in the Good News Translation. Contains 33 pages of additional spiritual information proven to be helpful to military personnel and their families
… and more.
If you are the spouse or parent of a deployed military person, you are invited to receive this Kit as a FREE gift with no cost or obligation. Please click here to request a kit-
http://www.campuscrusade.com/hhrequest.htm

If you would like to make a donation to help distribute Heroes at Home kits please click here.
http://give.ccci.org/featured/heroesathome/

Did You Know?

APO stands for American Post Office, AE stands for Allied Europe.

Visit www.presidentialprayerteam.org for information about how you can pray for President and Mrs. Bush, our elected leaders, and military advisors.

Militarymoms.net sent 1,500 pounds of Christmas cards to our military members this past holiday season. That’s ¾ of a ton!!

Militarymoms.net maintains a Terms of Service. When you register your logon name or visit the chat room, you imply your consent to abide by the TOS. Not sure what the TOS is? Visit. www.militarymoms.net/termsofservice.html to find out.
You can send a FREE post card to a APO/AE address - with Post Cards from Home.
Trouble trying to figure out the military rank structure? Get the info here.
President Bush gave our military a good pay raise in Jan. 2003. DFAS: 2003 Military Pay Rates
Defense Finance and Accounting Service Home Page
DOD Dictionary of Military Terms Find out all the lingo terms here.

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Procedures for Military Moms Mail:

Many of our members want to send well - wishes to our soldiers overseas. If you’d like to help, please visit this link for details: http://www.militarymoms.net/sot.html

Please send me a email if you would like a copy of the letter to send to your school, Church or group to request letters for our Operation Support our Troops project to send thru MM'S.
If you have any questions please free to send a email to Troop Support.

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Care Packages

DO NOT send tobacco products, alcohol, or pornography.
Some good items to send are - Antibacterial Hand wash, Wet ones, Bathing clothes, Magazines, Candy, Hot Chocolate packs, Ramen Noodles, Sweetened Kool aid Envelopes, Tuna packets, Crackers, Stationery, pencils/pens, Pocket Bible, Crossword-puzzle type books, Store-packaged goodies, Soap, Toothpaste, Foot powder, Toothbrushes, and other non-liquid toiletry items. Chap stick, A small sewing kit, Silly putty, Pocket size games, Tang, Juice boxes, Condiments packets from fast food restaurants, A big fluffy towel, This list could go on and on .. smiles ---

Wrap baked goods in saran wrap before putting in the box then cushion with popcorn, your loved one then will have cookies and popcorn to eat.

Department of Defense

Learn more about the ARMY

Learn more about the NAVY

Learn more about the AIR FORCE

Learn more about the MARINES

Learn more about the COAST GUARD

Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.
~ John 15:13

Remember, Jesus always lives to make intercession for "those who draw
near to God through Him" (Hebrews 7:25).

if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
~ 2 Chronicles 7:14