A Day to Remember

Today is Memorial Day, the day we set aside to remember the men and women who gave their lives in service of our country. It used to be called Decoration Day, and I can remember my aunts and cousins making the rounds of all the cemeteries to decorate the graves of family. The day holds a special place for me, as my Dad served faithfully in the Navy, and is buried in a military cemetery. I am grateful to the Boy Scouts who decorate each of the graves there, treating each with honor and respect.

The idea of remembering is certainly not a new one. After Jacob had his dream of the ladder to heaven, he erected standing stones to commemorate the event, and to signify that God was in that place. Standing stones were small piles or stacks of stone that were used throughout the Middle East to signify a place and event of significance. When people would pass by these stones they would ask, “What happened here?” and the story would be retold for their own remembrance and to teach their children.

Another method of remembering was the establishment of an official feast.  When the people of Israel were led out of Egypt, God initiated the celebration of Passover, so that they would never forget. Every year since the ancient time of Moses, the Seder has been observed and celebrated. Jesus established The Lord’s Supper or Communion for the same reason. We partake so that we will never forget the great sacrifice, the huge and holy act of God for our salvation. We have relationship with God because of Jesus. That is certainly worth remembering!

One thing worth remembering is what God forgets, our sin. Because of the sacrifice of Jesus and because of God’s great love for his own, he gives us new hearts and makes us his people.

For I will forgive their wickedness,

And will remember their sins no more.

Hebrews 8:12

As you enjoy your Memorial Day barbeque, remember. Remember the men and women who sacrificed for your freedom. Remember the God who saves and loves you. Remember, and remind somebody else! We are blessed indeed.

Truly Safe

Do you remember where you were when the twin towers in New York City collapsed on 9/11, twelve years ago? Many of you were children. Perhaps what you remember is a feeling, an overwhelming sadness that you didn’t understand. I was getting ready to go to work. I turned on the television for background noise. I couldn’t turn away. I remember watching, horrified, as I saw the second plane hit the second tower, and seeing it collapse down upon itself. I hurried in to work, mostly to be with other people who could verify that what I was seeing was real. I worked then in a public high school, and the place was eerily quiet. We followed what was happening on our computers.

I learned two things that day:

1.     Security is an illusion. Since then we have implemented the Homeland Security Act, beefed up TSA, and allowed innumerable encroachments on our freedoms, all in the name of security. The truth is, if a person is determined to cause mayhem and pain, he will find a way. The only security in this life is to trust in God.

“Do not put your trust in princes (or presidents), in mortal men, who cannot save. When their spirit departs they return to the ground; on that very day their plans come to nothing. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them – the Lord, who remains faithful forever.” Psalm 147:1

2.     We need each other.  Think how different that day would have been if the people of New York had lived up to their reputation as cold loners. The whole world looked on, wishing they could do something to help. The people of New York were our hands and feet in those first hours. We are created for community.  We are better together than we are alone.

“Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work. If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and had no one to help him up. Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one many be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.” Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

People ask me where God was on that horrific day. We know where he was; he was there, embodied by the many men and women who reached out to help, risking their own lives. He was there comforting the dying and strengthening the rescuers. He was there feeding and loving and weeping right along with us. God doesn’t always prevent evil men from the terrible things they devise; we wish he would. Instead, he works through us, his body, to comfort and lift each other up.

We are afraid of so many things. God wants us to take shelter in him, remembering that he is our only security. He wants us to reach out to each other. It is in sharing our stories, in remembering those who were lost and the heroic people who acted that day that God is glorified and evil is overcome. It is in sharing our fears today that God can overcome them. We can rest in him.

What are you afraid of? Find someone and share. Lay your fears down.

“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.' Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear…” Psalm 91:1-5