May 30, 2011

The Call To Sacrifice!

Today we pause to pay special tribute to those who sacrificed their lives so the rest of us might continue to live in freedom. And to these honored dead we add the thousands more whose service to their country cost them sight, or hearing, or limbs, or psychological health, or family relationships.

Today I pray that God would comfort the families of our fallen military men and women in the loss of relationships that they hold dear.

But more than remembering or even appreciating the sacrifice of these heroes to whom we are indebted, all of us should think soberly about what we would say were they to call us to account for the way we have used the freedom that their costly sacrifice preserved for us.

The call to sacrifice is only secondarily, always regrettably, but sometimes necessarily a call to arms. Primarily, however, it is a call to daily living, to putting others first, to being willing to “live simply so that others may simply live.” It is a life-principle according to which one not only wills but also works toward enhancing the lives of others. It means not only rejoicing when someone is “better off” than we, but actively sacrificing to make that happen.

That this principle strikes us as counterintuitive is a mark of fallen, human nature. Sadly, we often feel cheated and resentful when we see our neighbors prospering and enjoying more of the fineries of life than we are able to afford. Perhaps this is because our neighborhood is well beyond sight of the truly disenfranchised of our world. Were any of our departed military heroes privileged to share with us one word of advice, I suspect it might be “perspective.”

To see life in proper perspective and to live according to that vision is a mark of wisdom and godliness. On the eve of his tearful farewell to the Ephesian elders, the apostle Paul, reminded them of the divine mandate to help the weak and told them to constantly bear in mind the teaching of Jesus: “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). “The American Dream” must not be to have more stuff than one’s neighbor, but to see to it that one’s neighbor has enough stuff.

Ever since its original publication on September 8, 1892, our Pledge of Allegiance has continued to extol America for its commitment to the principle of “liberty and justice for all.”
To date nearly 1,344,000 Americans have paid the ultimate sacrifice to defend that principle and the people for which it stands.

Those worth dying for are surely worth living for!


Comments

  1. Rob Starner - March 19, 2012 at 6:07 am - Reply

    Thanks for the positive feedback!


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