Remember

 Memorial Day, a time to remember and honor the many men and women who lost their lives in military service to our country over the years. I come from a military family and have many family members who've served in the military. Some still do. We are fortunate to have not lost any of them to death in warfare even though so many have fought in wars. My heart hurts for those families who have. It is a tragedy when a serviceman or woman loses his /her life, but the family left behind has suffered a great loss too. Mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, wives & children will live the rest of their lives without someone they love. There really aren't words adequate to express their loss. Remember, just remember them, and pray for the families left behind.

 "Courage is contagious. When a brave man takes a stand , the spines of others are often stiffened." Billy Graham

 " As we express our gratitude we must never forget the highest appreciation is not to utter words , but to live by them. " Joseph Campbell

" The bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them , glory and danger alike , and yet notwithstanding , go out to meet it. " Thocydides

They Too Loved the Sun & Rain

These 4 little boys enjoyed playing soldiers in our woods , not too many years ago.The two boys on the left are my nephews, both are now men married with children of their own and serving in the ministry of our Lord . The 2 boys on the right are our sons, they strive to serve Jesus too, but not in any paid positions..The tallest boy is our oldest son who served in the U.S.M.C. for 11 years doing 2 tours of duty in Iraq , one as a tank commander.All 4 boys loved a Grandpa who served in the U.S. Army in Korea and Vietnam, and our nephews' mother ( my baby sister) served in the U.S. Navy ,and their father was a Sea Bee. The two boys on the left also have a sister who serves in the U.S.Navy and now their youngest brother serves there too..Our sons' other Grandpa served in the U.S. Navy during WWII. Fortunately, our son came home alive, as did my father, father-in-law, and our nephew's father.So many did not.

Our son and my father lost many friends and brothers in arms.I know I cannot truly understand the loss of someone you fought along -side and may have seen die,or cradled them in your arms as life left them, but I do know this is  life-changing ,something  you can never forget.Even pondering this breaks my heart. Little boys emulating soldiers, so soon becoming warriors, and life changes for them in an instant.What I do know is the men and women I have talked to joined the military branch of their choice because they really felt called to serve their country and I know our son and my father were willing to give their lives for their country, believing their country was worth their sacrifice.Having a few friends and acquaintances who would mockingly belittle such noble ideals , and seeing the news make light of the ideals so many in the history of our country knowingly and willingly sacrificed their lives for, causes me to praise God for those who will stand for their ideals, for our country,and in so doing are not mocking the people they sacrifice for.So unlike what I see in those who voice their views against the ideals of our founding fathers, against those who stand and die for freedom, and for a country that has stood firm for those seeking these ideals..until this time in history.

I am thankful , unabashedly, for the American ideals of freedom for all, but wonder why this freedom is being squashed in the idiocy of being politically correct , and why we will censor truth so as not to offend those who would gladly terminate us for this freedom?Why we are so willing to eliminate or censor any celebrations deeming themselves "Christian" but embrace any and all honoring  those who are anti-American and anti-Christian ? What does this say to our youth, and what will this bring about in the near future as the children we raised in such idiocy become our leaders and the enforcers of politically correct ideals?

I wonder about this as I ponder the Christians of Nazi Germany,you know, so cool, so new, so...against the Jews and those who would support or defend them? So much like what I see now. How did I get to this ,here, in this post? Well, the loved ones I know who have served in the military fought for the ideals our country seems to have left behind in the pursuit of a new message, one that seems to mock, berate, and show shame for ideals that many, many thousands in our history DID die for.Shame on us, but most sad of all, it seems the shed blood of our countrymen cries out for the loss.So many good and righteous men and women buried , having died far away from home and loved ones, so the youth of our country can mock them, vandalize their cities, and give up rights won at great cost to show themselves to be "cool" and follow current media idols.

Happily, all 4 of these boys have grown up to be Godly men.They miss their Grandpa ( my father), a veteran who died when they were young.My father loved us, he loved this country. He would not understand those who take our liberty so lightly and are quick to mock this country, and apologize to the world for who we are.I appreciate him and what he stood for more and more and am thankful our sons and nephews do too.

It seems to me , honoring veterans of our wars is best done by remembering what they gave their lives for, and that is our country, their fellow brothers-in-arms, their families.Many felt they were honoring God in serving....mocking and belittling them, their families, our country , seem small , petty,and mean.

Take some time to reflect on the military men and women you know or are related to . Thank them. Remember those who fought and died in military service in this country. It is a small and quick thing to do for those who lost their lives and cannot enjoy this holiday weekend you are looking forward to, but I suspect, they would not begrudge you this. The freedom to celebrate any and all occasions with those you love in a country proclaiming freedom is what they signed up to fight for!

"For love of country they accepted death."James Garfield
"We who are left how shall we look again Happily in the sun or feel the rain ,Without remembering how they who went ungrudging and spent their lives for us loved , too, the sun and the rain?"Wilfred Wilson Gibson
 "Death leaves a heartache no one can heal. Love leaves a memory no one can steal.." headstone in Ireland

"The dead soldier's silence sings our national anthem." Aaron Kilbourn

Remember, Please !

" Soldier, rest!Thy warfare is o'er, Dream of fighting fields no more." Sir Walter Scott "War mends but few, and spoils multitudes." Jeremy Taylor "I heard the sound of Taps one night when everything was still I listened to the bugler play and felt a certain chill I wondered how many times that Taps had meant 'Amen', When a flag had draped a coffin of a brother or a friend. I thought of all the children, Of the mothers and the wives, Of fathers, sons and husbands with interrupted lives. I thought about a graveyard at the bottom of the sea Of unmarked graves in Arlington, No, freedom isn't free." Memorial Day Poems "So the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him, for He Himself knows our frame, He is mindful that we are but dust.As for man, his days are like grass, as a flower of the field, so he flourishes, when the wind has passed over it, it is no more....but the loving kindness of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him." Psalm 103 :13-16

What can we really say to the families of fallen soldiers ? Memorials and tributes do not bring back their loved ones or repair the wounds and scars of the families who have lost them . Memorials and tributes do not reach the fallen in their graves. Lives interrupted, forever.Respect though, is due them, and memorials serve us, the living. Memorials hopefully cause us to pause and remember the lost and fallen of so many wars and realize the true cost of war and strive to appreciate each other and what we have because of the sacrifice of so many for so many. In memory of the fallen, may there always be someone to remember you and tell your story.