Memorial Day

Good Morning, I have my second cup of coffee.  Today is a national holiday in the United States; Memorial Day portends to be a day to remember the people in our history who have given their lives to protect our freedoms and our way of life.  In most of our minds, however, it is the day that signals school is almost over, summer weather begins, swimming pools open, and the outdoor grill is put into action.  

Most people seem to have difficulty remembering the sacrifices made by others on our behalf.  Whether we are thinking about soldiers killed in battle or about Jesus crucified on a cross, the typical attitude can be summed up as, "Well yes He paid the price for me; but, what has He done for me today ?"  However, there are two obvious exceptions to this typical attitude.  

The first exception occurs among the immediate family and intimate friends of the one who was killed.  The mother who lost her heroic son to an enemy's bullet never forgets.  The best friend or fiancée or widow of the slain warrior never forgets.

The second exception is among those who fought alongside the one who took the bullet.  Whether your compatriot was killed by the enemy or by friendly fire or even just by accident, when you know it could have been you, you just do not forget.

For these two exceptional groups, Memorial Day is a lot like the typical religious Eucharist or Communion service.  It is a time of ceremony that commemorates something most of us forget most of the time.  Although it is deeply meaningful to the exception groups, they still wonder, do the others really understand the significance of what we celebrate. 

As I watch the religious observances of the Eucharist or Communion I often find myself thinking of how strange they seem when contrasted with the simplicity of what Jesus asked.  

• Jesus was with his ten most intimate friends; religion puts us with scores of people whom we really do not know.
• Jesus was having a common supper with the usual food and drink; religion puts us in a strange meeting with stuff we never eat any other time.
• Jesus was so close to the guys that some leaned on Him; religious leaders are remote and untouchable.

If Jesus is actually my best friend, my spiritual Bridegroom; If Jesus and I are actually fighting alongside each other to tear down the works of satan that steal the freedoms of men and women around us; then it becomes obvious.  When Jesus asked us to remember as often as we eat and drink the most common foods of our society He was talking about something far more than holding a religious ceremony.

When we were raising our five children, the school systems, the sports activities, the pressures of business and life all worked to make having dinner together almost impossible.  So we made breakfast a required meal at home.  No matter whose schedule required the earliest departure, the whole family got up and ate breakfast together before that one had to leave.  A meal together is a way we celebrate being family.

What Jesus was saying had nothing to do with starting a religious tradition.  It was all about our learning to be family together and remembering His sacrifice that made our family unity possible.

Almost daily I am drawn into conversations with people who resent God's decision not to fix some problem.  Ah how refreshing it is, however, when I come upon the ones who just want to have pizza and talk about how much Jesus has already done for us.

His, thus Yours,

  Stuart