Remember

Memorial Day

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in service of the United States of America.

Memorial Day was borne out of the Civil War and a desire to honor our dead. It was officially proclaimed on 5 May 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, in his General Order No. 11. “The 30th of May, 1868, is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers, or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village and hamlet churchyard in the land,” he proclaimed.

It is a day to both honor and remember those that paid ultimate price of death defending our lives.

Why the Need?

Simple we forget.

Life has a funny characteristic of moving extremely fast and the faster it goes, the more forgetful we are.

So busy some days forget to eat lunch

So busy some days we forget make a phone call

Time also has a characteristic of producing forgetfulness

Your kids ever tell a story about something someone did and then they had to tell you that story was about you?

Time is a great eraser of memory

We need days set aside to cause us to STOP and REMEMBER

Joshua 4:1–9 KJV 1900

1 And it came to pass, when all the people were clean passed over Jordan, that the Lord spake unto Joshua, saying, 2 Take you twelve men out of the people, out of every tribe a man, 3 And command ye them, saying, Take you hence out of the midst of Jordan, out of the place where the priests’ feet stood firm, twelve stones, and ye shall carry them over with you, and leave them in the lodging place, where ye shall lodge this night. 4 Then Joshua called the twelve men, whom he had prepared of the children of Israel, out of every tribe a man: 5 And Joshua said unto them, Pass over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of Jordan, and take ye up every man of you a stone upon his shoulder, according unto the number of the tribes of the children of Israel: 6 That this may be a sign among you, that when your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean ye by these stones? 7 Then ye shall answer them, That the waters of Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it passed over Jordan, the waters of Jordan were cut off: and these stones shall be for a memorial unto the children of Israel for ever. 8 And the children of Israel did so as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones out of the midst of Jordan, as the Lord spake unto Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, and carried them over with them unto the place where they lodged, and laid them down there. 9 And Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests which bare the ark of the covenant stood: and they are there unto this day.

1. MERCY OF GOD. “The Lord your God dried up the waters” (v. 23). Nothing impossible with Him; He hath opened up for us a new and living way. “That ye may know the exceeding greatness of His power to us-ward who believe.”

2. FAITHFULNESS OF GOD. “Until everything was finished” (v. 10). He that hath begun the good work will carry it on. The angel of the Lord stood by till Joshua the high priest got everything that he needed (Zech. 3:1–5). The Holy Spirit is able and willing to do the same for every trusting one.

3. GRACE OF GOD. As long as the priests stood in Jordan the way stood open, but when the priests came out the waters returned and overflowed (v. 18). Then the day of grace was passed, and the door shut. The grace of God that brought salvation still appears. “Behold, now is the accepted time.”

4. LOVE OF GOD. “Let your children know” (v. 22). This is the language of Him who will have all men to be saved, and to come to a knowledge of the truth. “Suffer the little children to come to Me, and forbid them not.”

5. POWER OF GOD. “That all the people of the earth might know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty” (v. 24). These stones are a witness to the saving power of God. They are as brands plucked out of the fire. Let all the people know it. Tell it out. “He is able to save to the uttermost.”