Tuesday, May 31, 2016
I trust you all enjoyed your Memorial day weekend and spent some quality time with your family or friends. I hope you also took time to remember those who, after God, made it possible for all of us to relish in the liberties we enjoy in this great country The purpose of Memorial Day is to honor those who died serving our country but we must also honor those who faithfully served in the military and are still with us today.
While the memories we have of our deceased loved ones can be painful at times, I choose to believe that the good memories we have of them easily outweigh the bad. The reason many people live in sadness is that they focus mainly on the death and not the life of their loved ones. The memories that we have of our deceased loved ones should be sweet and should definitely brighten and make our lives better. Psalm 116:15 reads: “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His faithful servants.” If the Lord sees the death of His loved ones as precious, why should we see them any other way?
Then, there are those who continue to live in guilt and shame because they feel they could have loved or done more for a certain loved one while he or she was still alive. I hope you are not one of them. The truth is that all of us, if we are honest, know we could have done better. The devil specializes in making people feel guilty and unworthy to call or consider themselves true children of God. If He hasn’t already, Satan can also use people in your life to accuse you and constantly remind you of your past mistakes. Jesus said that He came into this world to save sinners, not to condemn them. (See John 3:16-17) So, if the devil says you are condemned and Jesus says you are not, who are you going to believe? If we are grateful for those who died so we could live in the land of the free, we should be even more grateful for the One who has saved us, not only from sin, but also from guilt and shame. Be free!
Memory verse for the week (John 8:36) “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.”
