Daily Lesson for May 25, 2015

Today's daily lesson comes from Deuteronomy chapter 4 verses 9 and 10:

9 "Only take care, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things that your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. Make them known to your children and your children's children—10 how on the day that you stood before the Lord your God at Horeb, the Lord said to me, 'Gather the people to me, that I may let them hear my words, so that they may learn to fear me all the days that they live on the earth, and that they may teach their children so.'"

Yesterday I told a little story in church to encourage parents to observe Memorial Day.

The story goes that a young boy was in the narthex of one of America's great churches, staring up at a group of engraved plaques on the wall.  The minister at the church noticed the boy's fascination and asked the boy if he knew what the names on those plaques were all about. When the boy shook his head no, the minister told him those were the names of all the men from the church who died in the service. The boy then looked back at the minister with wide-eyes.  "Was it in the first service or the second service?" he asked.

Today is a day set aside for remembering.  While Memorial Day weekend traditionally marks the beginning of summer, and no doubt today will be full of cookouts and family time in the parks, we should never let the memorial part of Memorial Day go unobserved. Too great a price has been paid for us not to take time and remember.

The Bible tells us to make things known to our children and our children's children. Today is day set apart for remembering the men and the women who gave what Lincoln called, "the last full measure of devotion." May we take time today to tell our children and our grandchildren; and may they know and never forget what it means that so many names -- known and unknown -- lost their lives in the service.