I’ve been thinking about Memorial Day all week. It’s a national holiday. A day of observance, of recognition, as well it should be. But, in our changing world, we’ve become a little less traditional – not always a bad thing, I’m loving this business casual thing – but, sometimes in doing so, we forget the meaning behind some of our observances. Memorial Day is not just another three day weekend.
The Civil War ended in 1865. Because this war claimed more lives than any other U.S. conflict, it required the establishment of federal cemeteries. That’s a sobering thought, isn’t it? Through the decoration of graves, memorial services, and gatherings to pay homage to those many fallen soldiers, Decoration Day was established. Decoration Day became known as Memorial Day. Decoration Day was birthed as a result of the Civil War and observed each year, Memorial Day was established as a federal holiday in 1971. Memorial Day was established to honor all men and women who have died while serving in the U.S. military.
Many have died so that we and others throughout the entire world can be free. Free from bondage, free from oppression, and many other things that have held our country and other countries throughout the world captive.
Today, we honor those men and women who lost their lives so that I could live mine. I thank them and I thank their families
As I’ve been rolling Memorial Day around in my mind and thinking about all the freedoms I have as a result of others, folks I don’t even know who died for my freedoms, there’s something else I’ve been wondering: Shouldn’t we too include Jesus and God in our Memorial Day observances?
Didn’t Jesus pay the ultimate price for our freedom? Didn’t he lose His life so that I could live mine, eternally? Didn’t His death result in my freedom? Freedom from the oppression of sin? Freedom to choose eternal life? Just like those who gave their lives, Jesus too gave His life. Just like families offered up their loved ones through the military, God offered up His Son at the cross.
Through Jesus’ life, death and resurrection, we too are freed from bondage, free from oppression. We may not know those who died in the military conflicts, but we have an amazing opportunity to come to know The One who paid the ultimate price on a cross on a hill not just for my earthly freedom but most importantly for my eternal freedom. How do we memorialize that? How do we honor that?
The best way to honor someone is to live honorably. Maybe today we should think about those who gave their lives for us, for our earthly freedoms and most importantly for our eternal freedoms, and ask ourselves “Does my life bring honor to them? Does my life bring honor to Him?”