Every Day Memorial Day

Today the nation celebrates our fallen heroes who died serving America during wartimes ago. These men and women made the ultimate sacrifice for a cause they believed worth dying for. They left their homes, their families, friends, knowing that they may never return. It was a cause they knew would leave an everlasting mark on history, for those they left behind and those yet to come. Isn't that just what Jesus did?

His death symbolized the penultimate sacrifice. He knew when He embarked on his ministry what fate belied Him. He left behind all that He knew to affect this world in such a profound way that His followers could never envision.

Every Easter and Christmas, many attend religious services for the only two times a year. Ministers preach about how we all should remember the true meanings of both holidays: the birth and resurrection of our Christ. Memorial Day is a time that we celebrate our military casualties. I don't want to distract attention from this important remembrance. Having served for several years in the Army, this day means a little something extra to me.

However, why aren't our relationships with God such that we memorialize Him every day? Why does it take a death or a holiday to remember all that He has done and continues to do in each of our lives each day? I fall short as well, but why? Maybe we place to much emphasis on what we see and who we know here on earth. Maybe we just simply haven't given ourselves and control of our paths completely over to Him.

May God pierce our hearts to look to Him every day for guidance, strength and remembrance.