Memorial Day 2026

May 24, 2026

John 15:13"Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends."

Tomorrow is Memorial Day. It is a day to remember and honor those who gave their lives in service to this nation. It holds two moods at once. For many people it is the beginning of summer — family gatherings, cookouts, a welcome day off. But beneath all of that, Memorial Day asks something deeper of us. It asks us to stop. To remember. To give thanks.

And remembering matters.

In scripture, remembering is never merely looking backward. It is a sacred act. In the book of Joshua, when the people crossed the Jordan River, they were told to gather stones and build a memorial, so that when future generations asked, "What do these stones mean?" the story could be told again. The memorial was not there just to decorate the landscape. It was there to keep memory alive.

That is what Memorial Day can be for us.

More than a date on the calendar. More than a three-day weekend. A kind of national memorial stone. A day when we pause and ask: What has been given for our sake? Who paid a price that we did not pay? What freedoms and opportunities came to us because someone else stood in harm's way?

For me, one of the deepest feelings attached to this day is gratitude.

I am grateful for the young men and women who gave their lives for this country, not knowing me, not knowing I would ever exist to benefit from their sacrifice, giving themselves for something larger than themselves. Their service was not abstract. Each one had a face, a voice, a family, a story. Each one was a son or daughter, mother or father, brother or sister, a beloved person.

Jesus said, "Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends." Memorial Day brings us face to face with that verse. Whatever opinions we hold about particular wars or politics, this day is not about those debates. It is about those who bore the cost. It is about sacrifice, courage, and a willingness to give everything for the sake of others.

And for most of us, Memorial Day reaches beyond the military as well. We think of police officers, firefighters, first responders who placed themselves in danger for others. And often our thoughts widen further still. We remember the people in our own lives who gave of themselves for us. A parent who worked long hours. A teacher who believed in us. A friend who stayed when staying was hard. A stranger whose kindness changed the direction of our day — or even our life. Many of us are who we are because others sacrificed on our behalf.  Memorial Day wakes us up to that.

But gratitude is not the only question this day asks. It also asks: What are we giving? It is one thing to admire sacrifice. It is another to become a sacrificial person. How are we laying something of ourselves down for the well-being of others? How are we serving beyond convenience?

Most of us will never be asked to make the ultimate sacrifice on a battlefield. But all of us are asked, in one way or another, to lay down our life. We do it when we set aside selfishness and choose love. We do it when we forgive instead of retaliate. We do it when we help someone we do not have to help. We do it when we choose compassion over indifference. There are many ways to lay down one's life.

Fear has a way of making us small. When people feel threatened, we pull inward, become tribal, shrink our circle of care. We protect what is ours and become cautious toward those outside the circle. But Christ keeps pressing against the edges of that smallness.

Christ keeps enlarging the circle. He keeps calling us to love our neighbor, then keeps expanding our understanding of who our neighbor really is. The Good Samaritan was neighbor to the wounded man he did not know. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The spirit of Christ keeps drawing us beyond fear, beyond tribalism, into a larger life of love and service. That does not mean we stop loving our country. It means we love it in a way that reflects the heart of God.

We can honor those who defended this nation and still long for a world in which war is no more. We can cherish freedom and still remember that freedom is healthiest when joined to responsibility — the responsibility to love, to serve, to protect, and to care.

We must also say something tender today.

Memorial Day is not a cheerful day for everyone. For Gold Star families, for those who have lost a son or daughter, a parent or spouse, this day can reopen deep grief. So we make room for sorrow. We honor the tears as well as the flags. We remember that every grave marker represents a human story, and behind every story are people still living with love and loss. That is where faith speaks.

Revelation tells us that one day God "will wipe every tear from their eyes." No more death, no more mourning, no more pain. That promise does not erase present grief. But it does tell us that grief does not have the final word. God does. And the final word is peace.

Isaiah gave us that radiant vision of the day when swords will be beaten into plowshares and nations will learn war no more. We honor the fallen not by glorifying war, but by deepening our commitment to peace. So yes, we are grateful to those who served. And yes, we pray that such sacrifice will one day no longer be necessary. We pray for wisdom in leaders, for courage in peacemakers, and for healing among nations.

Until that day, we remember. We remember with gratitude. We remember with humility, compassion, and with a widened heart. And then we ask: How shall we live because we remember? More gratefully, prayerfully, and responsibly. More generously and courageously. We will strive to live in such a way that someone else's life is better because we were here.

In the end, the most powerful way to honor the dead is to bless the living. So on this Memorial Day, let us remember every soldier who gave his or her life. Let us remember every family who carries that sorrow. Let us remember the loved ones in our own lives whose sacrifice shaped us. Let us also remember Christ, whose love stands forever as the deepest pattern of self-giving.

May our remembrance deepen our gratitude. May our gratitude deepen our compassion. May our compassion deepen our service, and may our service become one more small contribution to the peaceable Kingdom of God.

Until the day comes when the children ask, "War? What is war?" let us hold the high watch for one another, love one another, and remember.