Heavenly Father,
As the sun rises on this day of resurrection, the dawning light of gratitude captivates my heart and mind. From our east coast to the west, from Alaska to the Islands of Hawaii, the sun illuminates a country whose citizens live in freedom. We pray for relief from our present pandemic, but we pray freely. Out of our love for God and man you have led us to worship in our homes, but we do this by our own choosing. As we face our current time of peril, we know that our responses are only limited by what your wisdom determines to be appropriate and right. As I consider these wonderful graces, all I can do is rejoice.
But this morning, the expression of my joy is solemn. The freedoms we enjoy have indeed come at great cost. Throughout our history, tyrannical regimes have taken up arms to attack these privileges, but thanks to the sacrifice of fallen soldiers, they have never prevailed. Today, we remember the ultimate gift of these courageous men and women. We take the time to consider how inferior life would be without the payment of their precious lives. We deeply acknowledge that the cause for which they lived and died has been entrusted to us. May we commit to live each day in a way that merits the ultimate gift of their abbreviated years. As we think of the blood that they have shed, may our minds be drawn to the ultimate gift that was given as our substitute on Calvary’s cross.
With hearts that are consumed with gratitude we pray, In Jesus’ name,
Amen.
