Tip of My Iceberg

photo courtesy of Justin Casey on Unsplash

When we were young, my two sisters and I were part of Girl Scouts. It was the thing to do in our neighborhood and it kept us occupied a night a week. Back then, there was value in the pledge and promise we were taught to keep, something we memorized the first meeting we had. We were encouraged to live responsibly in light of being part of a greater picture.

“The promise read: “On my honor, I will try: to serve God and my country, to help people at all times, and to live by the Girl Scout Law.” The Girl Scout Law was more specific, but again, value and dignity were edified in it. “I will do my best to be honest and fair, friendly and helpful, considerate and caring, courageous and strong, and responsible for what I say and do, and to respect myself and others, respect authority, use resources wisely, make the world a better place, and be a sister to every Girl Scout.”

I think back on those times now and question where we lost dignity, respect and responsibility as significant character qualities to live with and to teach to others.

Trying isn’t even the issue. It’s acknowledging that such principles are worth investing in as individuals and a country.

I remember we would march in the Memorial Day parade with dozens of other troops, all who were taught to live by these particular ethics. We’d march behind our troop flag, with one girl having the honor of carrying the American flag.

It meant something.

Dad would talk to us about the privileges we had in America because of the sacrifice of those who fought for our freedom and way of life. He recognized that freedom wasn’t a universal truth even here in the States. But he valued what Memorial Day stood for–people had invested their lives in truth and hope so the whole country could benefit.

Memorial Day too often is minimized by it also heralding the beginning of summer, the end of the school year, and for us in the northern hemisphere, warm weather and sun.

The holiday itself began with the end of the Civil War, a war that claimed more lives than any other conflict in U,S. history. This war also required the first national cemeteries to be established so that the dead would not only be buried in an honorable way, together with fellow soldiers, but would be a place of remembrance so that we might never forget the cost of choosing to fight our own.

It’s a challenge to choose to remember when wars are happening that we don’t necessarily agree with. Different foci doesn’t give us the right, however, to ignore the benefit of living in a country where freedom is still something we have–freedom to disagree with others, to put forward our own convictions, to be different.

Freedom isn’t a given–it’s a gift. There’s always a price attached; someone pays.

In war, soldiers count the cost with their lives, injuries, and often rejection; in life we count the cost with consequences experienced for our choices.

Jesus understood that we are prone to allow people and situations to preoccupy our minds and hearts, holding us captive with obsessive thoughts and priorities that are more harmful than helpful.

“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” Galatians 5:1

He warned us that being yoked to actions or people that weren’t helpful to us makes us slaves to people or things that don’t have our best in mind. Only in knowing Jesus is there freedom and hope for life that’s more satisfying than we have here.

“In Him and through faith in Him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.” Ephesians 3:12.

This Memorial Day, take a moment to remember why we have the chance to enjoy freedom in this country. Think of the lives sacrificed for our current freedom, the people who put themselves in harm’s way so we could live in ways that allow us to be individually unique.

For the most part.

Knowing Jesus gives us a whole new level of freedom that allows us to be guaranteed of heaven. Not just a hoped-for destination; a full-fledged guarantee.

It’s something worth remembering.