Being the patriotic
person that I am, I want to take today to focus on Memorial Day since
that's what tomorrow is.... Do you all know the story behind how this
holiday came about? Well, I'm about to share it with you, along with
some other thoughts, so think red, white and blue, and let's go!
It was 1866, and the United States was recovering from the long and bloody
Civil War between the North and South. Henry Welles, a drugstore owner
in Waterloo, New York, near where I grew up, suggested that all the shops
in town close for one day to honor the soldiers who were buried in the
Waterloo cemetery. On the morning of May 5, the townspeople placed flowers,
wreaths and crosses on the graves of the Northern soldiers in the cemetery.
At about the same time, General Jonathan Logan planned another ceremony,
this time for the soldiers who survived the war. He led the veterans through
town to the cemetery to decorate their comrades' graves with flags. It
was not a happy celebration, but a memorial. The townspeople called it
Decoration Day. The two ceremonies were joined in 1868, and northern
states commemorated the day on May 30. Children read poems and sang civil
war songs, and veterans came to school wearing their medals and uniforms
to tell students about the Civil War. Then the veterans marched through
their home towns, followed by the townspeople to the cemetery. They decorated
graves and took photographs of soldiers next to American flags. Rifles
were shot in the air as a salute to the northern soldiers who had given
their lives to keep the United States together.
In 1882, the name was changed to Memorial Day, and soldiers who had died
in previous wars were honored as well. In the northern United States,
it was designated a legal holiday. The southern states commemorated their
war dead on different days. In 1971, along with other holidays, President
Richard Nixon declared Memorial Day a national holiday on the last Monday
in May. Cities all around the United States hold their own ceremonies
on the last Monday in May to pay respect to the men and women who have
died in wars or in the service of their country.
My father was a Marine during World War II, and an aerial gunner who operated
at the rear of the plane. I have put together a shadow box frame of his
belongings when he went off to war. I have the railroad ticket he used
when he left home, the postcards and telegrams he sent to his parents
from the war, and various newspaper articles of the war and other memorabilia
that was his during this period in his life. Among the assorted clippings,
there is one I would like to share with you that a young American officer
wrote while lying wounded on a battlefield. He had led his tank platoon
in a gallant and successful attack on a German strong point, and was later
decorated for his action in that attack. His foot was badly mangled when
his tank was knocked out by a German 88. A fellow officer amputated it
while they were hiding from the Germans in a ditch. The young soldier
lay there for hours, pretty well convinced that he was going to die.
It was during that period that he wrote the following poem:
WHAT DID YOU DO TODAY MY FRIEND?
What did you do today, my friend, from morn till dark?
How many times did you complain the rationing is too tight?
When are you going to start to do all of the things you say?
A soldier would like to know, my friend,
What did you do today?
We met the enemy today, and took the town by storm.
Happy reading it will make for you tomorrow morn.
You'll read with satisfaction the brief communique.
We fought - but are you fighting?
What did you do today?
My gunner died in my arms today, I feel his warm blood yet.
Your neighbor's dying boy gave out a scream I can't forget.
On my right a tank was hit, a flash and then a fire.
The stench of burning flesh still rises from the myre.
What did you do today, my friend, to help us with the task?
Did you work harder and longer for less, or is that too much to ask?
What right have I to ask you this, you probably will say.
Maybe now you'll understand; you see, I died today....
Ladies, Memorial Day is not limited to honor only those Americans from
the armed forces. It is also a day for personal remembrance. Families
and individuals honor the memories of their loved ones who have died.
Church services, visits to the cemetery, flowers on graves, or even silent
tribute mark the day with dignity and solemnity. Or maybe better put
would be to say, SHOULD mark the day with dignity and solemnity. Unfortunately,
many are not even giving this day's real meaning any serious thought at
all. For most it is another day off from work, a chance to get some yard
work done, another reason to eat watermelon and cook steaks on the grill
or just have a relaxing picnic at the park with family. Each activity
is harmless and most enjoyable, but void of any thought at all of the
sacrifice that was made by the millions of dead for the freedoms we enjoy
today. We have forgotten the price that was paid....
As I thought about Memorial Day, I couldn't also help but think about
how similar the Lord's Supper is to Christians. It is a memorial of the
great sacrifice our Savior made for us on the cross of Calvary. Luke
22:19 says:
"And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them,
saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in REMEMBRANCE
of me."
And in 1 Corinthians 11:24-26 says:
"And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this
is my body, which is broken for you: this do in REMEMBRANCE of me. After
the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This
cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink
it, in REMEMBRANCE of me. For as often as he eat this bread, and drink
this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come."
The last part of that verse above really caught my attention... Who are
we showing the Lord's death to when we partake of the Lord's Supper?
Ourselves, of course! This morning as I lay in bed thinking about Memorial
Day and it's meaning, I pondered sadly how many people would forget all
about it. And as my mind drifted to the Lord's sacrifice, I grieved even
more at how often we tend to forget - and need to remember - what price
the Lord Jesus Christ paid for us! Why else would He tell us to observe
the Lord's Supper till He came for us? It has nothing to do with our
salvation, does it? No, of course not! But it has everything to do with
the condition of our hearts. Some people may think remembering death
is a morbid thing to do, but everything we have as Christians centers
around Jesus death! Even Christ, before taking of the bread and wine
that represented His own broken body and blood, gave thanks for it, and
He was the one going to die!! Praise God we don't have to experience
that death, and yet, how often do we really give thanks to Him for what
He did, let alone remember it at all? If it weren't for your church's
observance of the Lord's Supper, just how often do you think you would
spend time on your own reflecting on the sacrifice Christ made for you??
Ladies, Jesus knew there would be things that would crowd, fill and steal
our hearts affections and that we would need to come together to remind
ourselves of His death for that very reason. Have you forgotten the sacrifice
He made for you upon that cruel tree? Have you spent much time lately
thanking Him for the liberty which you now enjoy as a Christian? Have
you considered the freedom which is now yours from the bondage of sin
in your life?? The Bible says to stand fast in the liberty wherewith
Christ hath made us free! Have you fallen from that stand?
The Lord's Supper is a simple, but humble observance that has a profound
effect on our hearts. It is a memorial feast to remind believers that
Jesus Christ gave His body and blood for the redemption of the world just
as those millions of soldiers gave their lives for our country's freedoms.
We should look back on such sacrifices with an attitude of great thanks
filling our hearts! We should look back at the cross with love and adoration
as to what Jesus did for us. He was our substitute, paying a debt He
did not owe because we owed a debt we could not pay! We should look forward
with hope and anticipation of His coming again. And we should look within,
examining our hearts and confessing our sins to be sure that we are ready
for His soon return! He died willingly, showing forth His love for us
- what are you doing today? America is supposed to be the land of the
free and the home of the brave. Do you personally fit that description,
or are you still entangled with sin?? Are you afraid to speak out for
the Lord who died for you??
In closing, please don't ever forget the sacrifice those millions of
soldiers made, and keep that memory alive and sacred in your hearts and
in the hearts of those you can influence. The reason more people are
not patriotic, I believe, is because they are not first mindful or thankful
for what Christ has done for them! They have forgotten.... If we will
think, we will thank, amen?
Happy Memorial Day,
Pam
Isaiah 60:1&2
Copyright 2000 Pamela A. Iannello
