A MEMORIAL DAY PRAYER

Gracious Father, Sovereign God, Lord of all nations,

On this Memorial Day, we pause to reflect upon our blessings as a nation and the high cost of those blessings for many.  Thank you for the freedom we enjoy in this country, for opportunities to flourish, and for the security of our land.

Thank you for those who have served in the Armed Services of our country, risking their lives for our liberty. It is a sacrifice that is easy to forget. For those who have it, freedom is like oxygen. It’s something we just have. Many will not understand just how precious either is until they are at risk of being taken away. Father, thank you for those who have given their lives in service to our country, sacrificing in such a costly way for the sake of others, including me.

Thank you for a day set apart, not just for celebration, but also for solemn remembrance as we consider the sacrifices of so many in our military. O Lord, may we be more aware of just how blessed we are as a nation. May we be more grateful for our blessings, more faithful in stewarding them well, more eager to share them with others.

We also pray today for the families and friends of those who have given their lives in service to our nation. May they be comforted in their sadness. May they be reassured that the sacrifice of their loved ones contributes to a worthy cause. May they be proud of those they have lost, entrusting their ultimate fate into your gracious hands.

Even as we remember those who have given their lives in the past, we also think of those whose lives are on the line today. We think especially of the men and women who are serving overseas in places of conflict and violence. Protect them. Encourage them. Bring them home safely.

Give wisdom to the leaders of our Armed Services, that they might know how best to deploy the troops in the cause of freedom. May their efforts be successful, so that true peace with justice might be established in our world.

God of peace, stir in the hearts of the leaders of all nations and in all who would use violence to further their cause. Change their hearts and minds. Give them a passion for peace. Bring an end to the pain, suffering, injustice, and violence in our world.

We know, dear Lord, that ultimate peace will not come until your kingdom is here in all of its fullness. Nevertheless, we pray for a foretaste of the future. We ask for the growth of peace throughout our world today so that fewer and fewer men and women will have to risk and even sacrifice their lives. We long for the day when people will “beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more” (Isaiah 2:4).

May Your kingdom come, Lord, and Your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven! All praise be to you, God of grace, God of mercy, God of justice, God of peace!

In Your Son’s Name, I Pray, Amen.

Every Day is Memorial Day

1 Timothy 3:16 (CSV) - "And most certainly, the mystery of godliness is great: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory."

In April 1863, in Columbus, Mississippi, after decorating graves of her two sons who died representing their beloved southland, an elderly woman walked to two mounds of dirt at the corner of the cemetery to place memorial flowers there also. "What are you doing?" friends shouted, "Those are the graves of two union soldiers." Softly that compassionate mother said, "I know. I also know that somewhere in the North, a mother or a young wife mourns for them as we do for ours."

That loving deed set in motion our celebration which has become known as Memorial Day. We honor the war dead once a year, but their sacrifice is evident every single day of the year! 

Today, I do not want to diminish the sacrifice and service of those men and women who have served our nation so faithfully and so valiantly, but I want to talk about one great Soldier. This great Soldier stepped onto a harsh battlefield one day. He took up arms and entered the fight knowing that it would cost Him everything. This Soldier bravely entered that battlefield and won a great victory, but at a terrible price. This Great Soldier gave His life, not for a nation, but for all humanity. His was not a life given in vain, but the sacrifice of His life served to set free the captives of sin. 

For the child of God, Every Day Is Memorial Day. We need to remember the sacrifice of Heaven’s Greatest Soldier. Today, let us remember a man named Jesus and the sacrifice He made for us all.

Prayer: On this day we set aside to remember those who gave the most precious gift they had - their life - that we may have the freedoms we enjoy in this land today. Yet, as a believer, I am reminded of the One who gave it all for me, that I might live in freedom from sin, death, and Hell for all eternity. I give praise and thanks to my precious Savior - my Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Memorial Day thougths

Greetings:

It's Memorial Day – too many people see it as a great three-day weekend. A time for the beach, to grill out and picnic, a time to kick back and relax. And while it is in a way all of those things, it has a much deeper meaning. It is in reality, a time of recalling the sacrifices (for many the ultimate sacrifice of their lives) who have defended our most precious freedoms we enjoy today. It is a day that we should pause and reflect upon those who did this to help attain peace for us to enjoy, however, it is also important to think about how our longing for permanent peace -- unattainable in this world -- points us toward a world in which it is possible.

The great Christian apologist/philosopher C. S. Lewis came to a fascinating conclusion in relation to this desire. He realized that if our deepest desires cannot be satisfied in this world, then we must have been made for another world. This truth was one of the factors that ultimately led to Lewis's conversion to Christianity. The Scriptures confirm that we are designed for a different world, and they urge us to focus on the world that is yet to come. As Paul advised those in Colossae, "Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth" (Col. 3:2). That is where we find the ultimate permanent peace – peace with God. There will come the day, which the prophet Isaiah wrote about, the day when men will "turn their swords into plows and their spears into pruning knives. Nations will not take up the sword against other nations, and they will never again train for war.” (Isa. 2:4b)

Until then, however, we honor those who fought our wars and sacrificed for a peace that is transitory, but it is also a time for reflection about the peace that is to come.

Have a blessed Memorial Day.