Hey everybody, Pastor Burton here with a quick Memorial Day message for you.
Now, as many of you know, traditionally I would go up in the pulpit, I'd have a Memorial
Day message and I would play taps to start off service.
This year, however, I'm traveling, so that was not an option for me.
So instead, I will leave you with this message.
And then from there, you of course can go and celebrate Memorial Day as you see fit.
So Memorial Day, it is a solemn day in which we take time to reflect on the sacrifices
of our country's finest warriors who are no longer with us.
And while it's clearly a day that impacts our active duty and veterans, I'll remind
you that it's also a day that can be and is often very hard for their widows, widowers,
fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, children, and for that matter, all of their family,
not only by blood, but their extended family and their friends as well.
And for many of them, it's a daily burden.
It's very hard.
So I'll invite you to turn to Jeremiah chapter 9 verse 1.
And the Bible says, Oh, that my head were a spring of water and my eyes a fountain of
tears.
I would weep day and night for the slain of my people.
You see here, Jeremiah recognized that there are limitations on our capacity to weep and
to grieve, yet grief is quite often the price that we pay for love.
So I'll remind you to reflect back to Isaiah 6 verse 8.
And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, Whom shall I send and who will go for us?
And then I said, Here I am.
Send me.
You see, this is the answer that was given by these men and women when our country asked
this same question.
And for many of them, knowing good and well, that it very well could be a one way trip.
As a church, we need to remember and honor their sacrifice in a spirit of not only gratitude,
but of hope.
And we need to be thankful that there are still those who would continue to answer this
call until the day comes that all wars cease at the coming of Jesus Christ.
Even though they've died, their deaths are not in vain, but rather the price paid for
our freedoms, our ability to worship God openly and in safety, a painful gift entrusted to
them to deliver from on high.
James 1 verse 17, the Bible says, Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down
from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.
And these gifts are gifts that are given out of love.
Think about it.
We know what this day is all about.
However, Memorial Day means many things to different people.
For some, the meaning runs so deep that it's virtually unfathomable to others.
You know, I would actually invite you to ask around, ask people that you know, and you
will find that you will get different answers from them.
And if you ask a veteran, those answers very well may shock you.
So again, gifts that are given out of love.
John 15 verses 12 through 13, the Bible says this, This is my commandment, that you love
one another as I have loved you.
Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends.
I'll remind you, the greatest treasure that we have on earth, it's not popularity.
It's not wealth.
It's not houses, cars, glitz, or glamour.
It's the very life we've been given by our Lord.
And its sacrifice shows how far and how deep our love for our fellow man should go.
Memorial Day is just that.
It's a memorial that sacrifices have been made for each and every one of us, that God
has been, is still, and will always be with us.
It's on us to accept the gift of life and liberty, and to live the best life we can
so that others may see light in the darkness.