Memorial Day is a time to pause and remember! Remember those men and women who died for their country in World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm, and Iraq and Afghanistan. Young and old, they heard the call of duty, marched off to war to defend their country and to fight for our freedom. Many came back without a scratch. Many returned home scarred by memories of violence and death. Some came back bent and crippled. Some never came home at all. Memorial Day is a time to remember how great a debt we owe these courageous women and men!
Let us use this day to visit cemeteries and place flowers on the graves of loved ones. Let us stand at attention at some Memorial Day service as the trumpet sounds a note of tribute and remembrance. Memorial Day is the perfect time to remember the living. Visit a veteran next door, at the Veterans Home or in the hospital. Take time to remember the widows and widowers and children of a veteran who live day to day with an empty space in their hearts. Let them know how much we appreciate their sacrifice.
Memorial Day is a time to remember! Remember the God who created this wondrous world and has given us a good life to live. Remember the Christ who sacrificed his life on the Cross to save all of us from the power of sin and death. Remember the Holy Spirit who lived in Jesus and who now lives in us, the Church. Remember the multitude of blessings we receive daily from God. Remember how deeply God loves each of us and that God erases all our sins. Remember God's promise to us of a new and improved life, in a new and better place.
Memorial Day is a time to remember! Remember the people in our past who have helped us along life's way -- parents, grandparents, teachers and preachers, neighbors and family, people we meet on our daily rounds.
Memorial Day is a time to reflect on where we've been, on where we are now, and on where we would like to be in the future. Memorial Day is a time to reflect on where the "American Dream" has gone wrong and about how we might get our country back on the right track. Memorial Day is a time to begin dreaming "new dreams" -- envision a world ruled by God's law of love, a world where there is true peace and harmony among all peoples, a world where everyone cooperates for the good of all, a world in which people really care about one another, a world where we have eliminated selfishness, greed, hatred and anger, jealousy and envy, lust, gluttony and apathy.
This Memorial Day is the time to start making those dreams come true. With God's help, we can do it!
Dr. Don Kuehle is a retired United Methodist minister who lives in Jackson. Opinions are those of the author.
Religion on 05/26/2016