Your Today Is My Everyday

Karen and I received wonderful emails and phone calls yesterday from people around the country letting us know that they were thinking of and praying for our families on Memorial Day. We don’t do Memorial Day services; that’s one hurdle we haven’t jumped over. I’m not able to go to those events. Something keeps me away. I truly do want to pay respects to our fallen heroes, but it’s just too personal for me.

And it is not that somehow I’m especially reminded of my son’s death on Memorial Day. I am thankful because of this particular day, Americans all across this country take moment to reflect on our liberty and the cost in blood paid for our freedom. But while you are commemorating Memorial Day, your today is my everyday.

One note I received was that is a small way my sacrifice is similar to our Heavenly Father’s sacrifice. His Son died to set the captives free from sin, and our son died to help defend the freedoms we as Americans enjoy every day. My friend said that he wanted to always remember that.

I appreciate that and I have asked God is that a taste of what you felt that day on Calvary? I in a small way knew Eddie was not coming home after his second tour; I can’t go into that now. But it in no way compares to what our Heavenly Father knew Jesus would face on the Cross. God revealed that day to us through the Prophet Isaiah:

    “Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:4-5)

There is a similarity, albeit disproportionally, to the sacrifice of our military to our Savior. The Apostle Paul touched on it:

    “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9)

Our military forsake, in most cases, higher paying, equivalent jobs in the private sector so that we might enjoy the abundant life available to us in America. Jesus paid the ultimate price, forsaking Heaven for the cross, so that we could become free from the penalty and power of sin to one glorious day be free from its presence. I’m so glad that my son and all other believers who died in service of their country reaped the ultimate reward.

There are places in this world where tyranny reigns and poverty is the norm; the latter always follows the former. Wherever people are controlled, be it through socialism to outright despotism, poverty is not far behind. Our nation was founded on a desire to be free; free to worship, free to work, and free to acquire wealth. Our Constitution, through its founding document the Declaration of Independence, is the instrument that guarantees those freedoms. It is that document, the US Constitution, that our fallen heroes swore to defend and died doing so.

Jesus died so that we would no longer have to live under the tyranny of sin, that we would be free from its snares and sufferings, so that we could live holy and righteous lives unto our Heavenly Father. This is known as saving grace:

    “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.” (Titus 2:11-14)

My family is always honored by the kind words of people remembering Eddie. It brings us great comfort and we do covet your prayers. And while I cannot speak for other Gold Star Families, I can for mine and for my son in that no greater joy could we receive than to know that you share the same Savior as the Jeffers family. To know that you are now walking in the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and have accepted His free will gift of salvation would be a great blessing.

Then your today and forever will truly be like our everydays.

In Christ
Dave
Ps. 37:4

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    Copyright © 2011 David Jeffers

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