It’s Memorial Day and although it’s universal for wars to happen, it’s also universal for wanting peace enough to fight for it. It is good for us to remember a sacrifice from those committed to serve without questioning, to fight forward to advance a cause, and to retreat when cutting losses.
We often feel it makes no sense the wars we often fight, but it makes perfect sense the wars fought for peace. Wars happen. It’s a strange situation of human brokenness to fight, and yet the Lord has warriors fighting on the deepest levels, the highest grounds, the lowest lows. The war in Heaven for us is the peace-making power the Lord employs, strange but sacred, tested but true.
What are we to do? Work in the peace already garnered. Work for the peace and work at the peace for wars already won. Be the peacemakers in life, negate the strife with LOVE.
And remember those who have been fighting for us all to have a better life, especially those who’ve passed away. This is why we celebrate Memorial Day – in humble thankfulness. They fought under command. They fought for love of country and of man and prayerfully they were reaching out to God for guidance. They sacrificed so we could live, so we could keep loving.
Wars will cease one day. Let us not wait for then to begin to love our enemies. We love under command too. Don’t let love grow cold. Don’t let love be forgotten as the greatest power.
Amen
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Matthew 24 NIV excepts
Jesus says: “You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom…
… Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.”
I love the local parades. The old cars and old fire trucks and the old time feeling of people enjoying themselves – being outside of course… Yes, I love the neighborhood-ness with the friendliness of neighbors and even people whom you have never met… I try to get in the first parade, Saturday morning, to then have Sunday and Monday for parades too, weather and schedule permitting. So, I continued to sit after the parade yesterday morning for a good 10 minutes after it was done so that I could simply soak in the neighborhood feel a little more, take the moment while making my facebook post of all the cool photos – the emails etc. I send my photos to my friend who is a online local newspaper editor… Local-ness, I appreciate it here, I appreciate being local wherever you are. And today, a woman was happy to chat with me about her brother, a Vietnam Vet, in the parade. I don’t worry about going alone to parades, God always finds me someone to talk to! Yesterday after that extra stretch of time sitting, people came by with chairs and asked if the parade was about to start – but I sadly had to tell them it was already done – sad look on the young tween-age kids faces, so I am glad the Lord gave me the notion to hand them all the candy I collected (not needing any of it) – and saw the smile in the young lads face. nice. I handed the young lady the flag given to me and a few pieces of the candy too – and I thought: God must have delayed me on purpose… cool… (and as I walked back to my car I collected some more roadside candy – saw my favorite blue vanilla tootsie roll – yum… Satisfied!
In the afternoon I made it to my friend’s art gallery show where it was a showing of all “plein air” – painted outside – paintings of local buildings. And this local Patterson farmstead, now owned by a local conservatory art project group, where they host summer camps, there were all the old farm buildings and fields – oh, I felt like I was up home. Was so nice to have farmland less than five minutes from the hustle and bustle of this area. The trees that must be near two hundred years old, including a heritage magnolia twenty-one feet around. Fabulous. I hung around the farm a little bit longer after seeing the art and my friend, thinking that I would do some writing – but instead I found myself attending to their outdoor flowers, taking the dried blooms off of the pansies and petunias, which entices new blooms to grow. I took an opportunity to water the plants too. I enjoyed helping an obvious need. I love the flowers – especially pertaining to memorial day – flowers. Flowers are the personal delight for you in sight and in the giving. Memories are the personal touching moments that are natural to each of us. God made us soft-hearted on purpose – God gave us emotions to care and love – to feel and smile – to laugh and cry…
In my memory of the fallen, I know I have many just from this past year who have “gone ahead” – many. I also heard and saw the new-ness of a little baby yesterday – age 3 and a half weeks, out at that farm – and held a 6 month old baby today – bursting with energy… New life abounds in these times – new life comes always with blessings and gives us focus to keep going. We don’t always see our relatives who are distant – but often we are given new life moments HERE – locally – in our sights. We can share our love locally for distant hearts.
And this brings me to my devotion for this Memorial Day Sunday – that God went LOCAL… He moved not a distant love but ALL His love to local. Yes – God sent Jesus here – local on earth and even in our hearts – for our hustle and bustle and for our limitedness of local. Jesus came to us. Came to save and not condemn – came to our place – which is His place to be in our hearts. Jesus came to simply be with us and in all complexity to save us. God went local, still does.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. John 3:17
I hope to return to this farm, if not today then soon. And I do plan on more local parades – in between the raindrops we hope. I love my tourist in my own town” feeling too. I saw a little boy in the latest parade and as young as he was, he greeted the crowds with enthusiasm – knowing his ability to wave from a firetruck was just as cool as to wave to a firetruck. Sometimes we are in our own parades of fun too – and Jesus, He is holding the banner of LOVE while we wave.
Amen and God Bless local living – local flair and fresh air…
Ah – Memorial Day weekend – oh how I feel like resting not working, but I know that my yard calls to me – will do that first and then later – maybe – will tackle the garden – but not yet – that bug has not quite bit me – but the flower beds do… Flowers are traditionally planted on Memorial Day weekend – for the living and for the fallen.
Oh how unbelievable war is – and this Memorial Day we honor those who have fallen in war – we remember all of our loved ones no longer with us – it is time for flowers and parades. Parties and picnics too… And even my old friends camping in Gettysburg this weekend are doing civil war reenactments… We have a nostalgia for the past. However we have failing memories of the present, we really do. If our news cycle is spinning somewhere else, we forget about the current challenges – I certainly do…
A friend asked me, at work, to help with making a thank you for some children in the Ukraine to boost their spirits – to thank them for gifts that they made our site which were their way to say thank you for some donations – including cleaned up equipment donated to a school. These children are the future and we forget the hardships there and practically everywhere – not everyone forgets but if I forget then others must forget too… So for me to be the “photographer”, this was the smallest slice of my energy to send prayers and well wishes to those kids in war. Lest we forget that EVERYONE needs our encouragement.
And it IS easy to forget far away places when it is so beautiful and peaceful in our pockets of peace here. Just like last week, when in the center of the city, when I helped with a community garden, the peace was punctuated with birds chirping – having the airspace and trees to roam. Our children too need these places, places like schools and clubs, neighborhoods and church activities… We raise our kids and then we forget about the other kids… I don’t know the answer to this but to keep praying… We can’t fix the world but we can fix-up the small places we live in. We can pray-forth the people we can’t touch.
Another prayer would be for those times that we must put distance and not closeness into our lives – for people whom we purposefully don’t have contact with – and know it is for the best – everyone has long stories of these times. And this “healthy” separation of life brokeness can only be placed into God’s Hands. Thanking God for the buffer and asking His forgiveness for the fracture – and knowing there is good space in buffer of space and time and moving on… Another reason that we need God Himself to be our healing force – we can’t do it ourselves and there are times we don’t want to do it – but one day – if not today – and often it is not today – God’s forgiveness will reign. We can try to tap into that if we can’t muster it ourselves.
And a last prayer (for this blessed quiet morning) is for the acknowledgement of the challenges that the Lord has gotten us over in the past and therefore we must remember He will get us through the ones in our future – near future and distant future. He will heal wounds, He will preserve peace with a restoration and not a quick fix, He will rule and reign and return. All knees will bow.
Let us bow our hearts in praise, hurt, humility, and hope. Where we can only fathom peace, God IS Peace.
Debbie Upper 