Memorial Day

Grammy-winning Gospel artist CeCe Winans comforted mourners with a song and a brief message at Saturday's memorial service for the University of Virginia football players who were shot and killed.

Americans set Memorial Day aside as a time of reflection, appreciation and remembrance. We honor our fallen so their sacrifice will not have been in vain. We remember in order to secure our great nation and our way of life. Likewise, as Christians, we remember, honor and value the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross to secure our eternal destiny and purpose for living here on earth. We remember the sacrifice He gave in order to ensure eternal life for those who call out to Him and recognize Him as Savior.

Memorial Day is a sacred day to reflect and give thanks to these heroes who have purchased with their lives the lives we enjoy today. For Christians, It’s the greatest modern-day illustration of how much Jesus loves us and wants us to be free from sin, pain, and death.

Memorial Day is approaching. Are you looking for ways to do more this year to honor those who sacrificed to preserve and protect the freedoms we enjoy? Memorial Day is a day to honor and commemorate the ultimate sacrifice that so many brave men and women have made, so it is certainly a day to pay our respects to these individuals, even if that is in death. Memorial Day is also a day to honor the families of these veterans who are in our communities. There are so many ways to give back even just a little bit of what these veterans have sacrificed for us, and below we provide you with just a few ideas to get you started. We thank the Lord for our vets and their families and hope that they will feel honored, appreciated, and loved this Memorial Day.

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On Memorial Day, President Trump offered his gratitude for all of the soldiers who have protected America's freedom.

We can allow Jesus’ horrific sacrifice to be an event like Memorial Day that we remember occasionally with gratitude. Or we can allow the One who died so we could live to lead us into “life in all its fullness” today (John 10:10 GNT).

Many of the men and women who died for our freedoms did not die for what we are becoming today. Many gave their lives so that we would be “one nation under God,” not above God.

This weekend, whether surrounded by your family or alone in rest and reflection, ask and answer the question, “What makes Memorial Day different from all other days?” And in answering that question may you remember the hand of God in founding and guiding this nation.