Our Response to the Military

The calendar has several days during the year that refer to the military.  However, three of those days are notable ones: Armed Forces Day, Memorial Day, and Veteran’s Day.  These are days of remembrance when honor should be given to specific military members or families.

      Armed Forces Day is celebrated the 3^rd Sunday of May.  Those to be honored are still serving in the military.

      Memorial Day is celebrated the last Monday in May.  Those who gave their lives in service to our country should be honored and families thanked.

·       Veteran’s Day is celebrated on November 11.  This day is to honor those who have served, but who no longer wear a military uniform.

The Bible identifies three action steps to take.

1)    Pray.  The Bible says, “First of all, I ask that you pray for all people. Ask God to bless them and give them what they need” (I Timothy 2:1a).  “All people” means that we pray for everyone – including military men, women and their families.  Pray that God would provide good health and strength to those who are currently serving and those who have previously served.  Also pray for the families who have lost loved ones.

2)    Give Thanks.  The Bible tells us that we should “give thanks” (I Timothy 2:1b).  Prayers for the military ought to include giving thanks to God for them.  If we see a military person (or know one) we should take time to let them know we appreciate their service.  We should also remember that the freedoms we enjoy have come through both sacrifice and service.

3)    Honor.  Scripture says that we are to, “Give everyone what you owe them. If you owe them any kind of tax, then pay it. Show respect to those you should respect. And show honor to those you should honor” (Romans 13:7).  Honor and respect is due to all those who hold positions of authority or who have made significant contributions to our society.  Our appreciation for service rendered should be expressed with much gratefulness.

Do you know someone who has served or is currently serving in the military?  Say “thank you” to them.  Tell them that you appreciate what they have done. Either audibly or silently pray for them giving thanks to God for the freedom you enjoy because of what they have done.

Worth and Dignity

When we hear the words “worth” and “dignity” when applied to people we should remember that everyone has been created by God and made in His image.  That means that each person has intrinsic value and God views them as having great worth.  Since God has such a high view of people, we should view them the same way.  These two concepts should be more than nice-sounding words to us.  They should be backed up by the actions we take that show that people are extremely important.

“Worth” has to do with the great value people have because they are the handiwork of God.  “Dignity” has to do with honor, esteem, and respect.  Both worth and dignity are terms that should be used to emphasize that every individual has an essential right to be highly valued, honorably respected, and sensitively treated.

The Bible affirms the worth and dignity of everyone when it says, “We are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10).  Notice several aspects of this verse.

1. “God” - The God of the Universe conceived, designed, and formed people exactly the way He wanted them to be.
2. “Workmanship” - God’s craftsmanship has been exhibited with divine skill that indicates his creation is the very best possible work that could ever be done.
3. “In Christ Jesus” - The image in which we have been created is that of Jesus Christ, God's one and only son.
4. “To do good works” - The purpose individuals need is to be involved in excellent good works – the very best that we can possibly do.
5. “Prepared in advance” - The good works we are to accomplish have been planned for us by God Himself and take place though us living a godly life.

The principles of fairness, justice and honorable treatment are meant for everyone.  In scripture, the Apostle Paul reminds us that this principle needs to be broadly applied to each person when he said, “Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people.” (Galatians 6:10).  How do you view other people?  Do you see them as individuals having great worth and dignity and worthy of great respect according to God’s standards?  Ephesians 2:10 (see above) should give us the motivation to make worth and dignity top priority as we interact with people.

Father's Day

Many accolades are given to mothers on Mother’s Day during the month of May, and rightly so.  However, we hear very little about fathers on Father’s Day during the month of June.  Look at the Apostle Paul’s instruction in the Bible to all of us about parents.  Ephesians:2-3 simply reminds us to: “Honor your father and mother—which is the first commandment with a promise—that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.” (Ephesians 6:2-3).  This speaks to both mom and dad; however, let’s focus on three things related to Dad.

1)    We are to honor our father.  The verse says, “honor.”  That means we are to place value upon him, prize him, respect him, and admire him.  Notice that this verse does not say that we are to respect him conditionally – that is, if he is a “good” father then we can give him honor.  Just because our father is who he is, honor is due him.

2)    We are commanded to honor our father.  The verse says to honor is a “commandment.”  In other words, we are to honor our father – not just if he treats us well and does good things for us.  But, we are to honor him simply because God has told us to do so.

3)    The result of honoring our father brings a double blessing.  Notice that the verse says that the blessing includes things “going well with you” and “enjoying a long life.”  When we honor our father it builds him up, it pleases the Lord, and God will bless us in abundant ways.

Make plans now to honor your father – not just on Father’s day, but continually.  Give him the respect that he deserves.  Share something positive with him.  If you need to ask for forgiveness, do it.  If there are some unresolved issues between you, go to your father and ask for forgiveness.  If you father is no longer living, thank God for him.  If there were some unresolved issues that were not resolved before his death, ask God to forgive you.  Make Father’s Day, and each day of the rest of the year, a time to honor your father.

Remembering

Besides Mother’s Day there are two other very special days on the May calendar – Armed Forces Day and Memorial Day.  Both of these days are directed toward honoring the people who are connected with military services.  Armed Forces Day takes place on the third Saturday of the month and is a day to salute everyone in all branches of our nation’s military.  These men and women can be called upon at a moment’s notice to perform a risky and perilous mission for our country.   President Harry Truman announced the observance of this day in a presidential proclamation in 1950.

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, was designed as a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation’s military service.  Although observance of this day started much earlier, in 1971 Congress officially designated the last Monday in May to celebrate this day.  As we remember men and women who have given their lives, we are reminded of the famous war poem “In Flanders Fields” which was written by Major John McCrae, a surgeon in the Canadian Army.  In the absence of the chaplain, McCrae performed the funeral ceremony for a soldier who had been killed.  The next day, while looking across the nearby cemetery he penned the poem, which only took him about 5 minutes to place the words on paper.  Dissatisfied with his scribbling, he threw it away only to have a fellow officer retrieve the paper and send it to newspapers in England where it was published.  The poem reads:

       In Flanders Fields the poppies grow – Between the crosses row on row,

       That mark our place; and in the sky – The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.  We are the Dead. Short days ago –

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lie In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.  If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow – In Flanders fields.

We are encouraged to take time during May to show honor and respect to those who are serving our country and for those who have given their lives for our freedom.  The scriptures remind us to, “Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king” (I Peter 2:17).  We are also encouraged to “Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor” (Romans 13:7).  We are also told, “Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves” (Romans 12:10).

As you reflect on the great sacrifices made by our military men and women, offer a prayer of thanks to God.  If someone in your family, or a friend, has given their life in the service of our country, talk to another member of your family and together thank God for them.  At a family gathering you may want to observe a few minutes of silence and then offer a prayer of thanksgiving.  Above all, let’s show honor and respect to those who served our country and are still serving in harm’s way.