Message given at Church of the Good Shepherd Episcopal in Covington, GA
https://www.youtube.com/live/SqOt9j5k9Bg?feature=share&t=1050
From Isaiah we hear: “Holy, holy,
holy, is the Lord of Hosts, the whole earth is full of his glory.”
“The pivots on the threshold shook
at the voices of those who called, and the house filled with smoke. And I said:
“Woe is me! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people
of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”
“Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of
Hosts, the whole earth is full of his glory.”
Here we are on another Memorial Day
weekend poised to remember our sons and daughters who gave their lives while in
uniform. They willingly sacrificed their freedom to stand for the freedom of
others. You, and me, our children, our children’s children.
To put on a military uniform means
to shift one’s allegiance to the uniform, to the commanding officer, to the
Commander in Chief of this country, or any country. In a country with a
monarchy that might be a King or a Queen.
The concept of Kings and Queens to
us is foreign because we chose a different form of government. Yet, here in
scripture we have a King, the Lord of Hosts. What does that mean? What does it
mean to live under the rule of a king? A sovereign? In comparison to our
democracy or republic? What does it mean to be so devoted to a cause that you
would give your whole life to pursue its aim?
A king is not like an elected
president. A king is not dependent on your voice or your vote. Especially this
King. The King, the Lord of Hosts. Holy, holy, holy …
But once they have given the oath,
completed their training, and put on that uniform, they are no longer their own
person. They belong to the one they have sworn their allegiance to … “I pledge
allegiance …”
And sometimes the battles they fight
are for a good cause, and sometimes the battles are not. But on the battlefield,
they are no longer their own person. This is one of the greatest sources of
moral dilemma in a soldier’s life.
Veterans, I am speaking to you.
Family members of veterans, I am speaking to you. Family members of fallen
soldiers, I am speaking to you.
Today, this Memorial Day Sunday, I
acknowledge the moral dilemma you faced while in uniform. Whether during war
time or peace, the conflicts of a soldier’s heart can be devastating not only
in the moment, but for a lifetime.
Soldiers are challenged in the
depths of their souls and spirits.
We hear Isaiah say: “Woe is me! I am
lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean
lips, yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of Hosts.”
If your soldier died in Christ, they
might very well have landed at the feet of the King with these same words. “Woe
is me; I am lost…”
Isaiah had a living encounter with a
Holy King. He was answering a call to return to the people.
Those who have died before us may
have answered that same call. Perhaps while they were alive in that dark place
of despair and decision making on a battlefield, in a trench, they had a moment
with the Living God, the King, the Lord of Hosts.
Wearing the uniform as a Christian
can pose a different kind of conflict. Sometimes the objectives of leadership
will align with your moral standards and sometimes they will not.
Our soldiers who live and those who
have died had to make decisions daily that may have disrupted their moral
compass, caused chaos in their spirits and souls.
It is devastating to have a family
member who suffers with post traumatic stress disorder. It can destroy a
person, a family, and can lead to suicide and pre-mature death.
On this Memorial Day, we remember
the fallen – both in the battle and out. On the fields and at home.
Our canticle sings:
Blessed is the God of Israel
Who comes to set us free;
He visits and redeems us,
He grants us liberty.
Soldiers facing moral dilemmas are
not always free. Sometimes to live by your moral compass means to lose your
life. Sometimes it means to betray the uniform. But the uniform is not a free
life.
The Good News for those who have
died, and those of you still living is that Christ has come to set you free.
“Blessed be the God of Israel, who
comes to set us free, …”
“Holy, Holy, Holy …”
The baptismal vows you have taken,
and the baptismal vows your soldiers have taken place you and them in the
temple of the living God.
Our allegiance is first to God, and
nothing can separate us from the love of God.
Yet, we can live in conflict with
the decisions we make and feel like Isaiah – “Woe is me”.
This Memorial Day, I would like to
pray for you – soldiers, veterans, and family members – both living and dead –
for the moral dilemmas they faced, the moral dilemmas you face, for the
fracture in spirit and soul that may have plagued your soldier or may plague
you or your family still today.
If this means something to you, if
you want the freedom promised by God to release the burdens you carry from the
past or the present, if you wan that freedom for a lost loved one, stand or
kneel, or sit and remember them in your hearts right now while I pray – and on
your way out of the sanctuary today, light a candle for them in the Narthex.
Let us pray:
Oh God of Mercy,
King of Glory,
Living God to whom the Angels cry
Holy, holy, holy.
See each man, woman, and child
represented here by their loved ones standing for them or standing for
themselves.
Lord God, Lord of Hosts
Your angels cleansed the tongue of
Isaiah with a burning coal to make his lips clean. He recognized who he was and
what he had done.
Lord, your people are filled with hurt
and pain, guilt and shame, fractured souls and spirits, fractured families, and
lives from making the most difficult decisions in difficult times.
Lord, I ask, where they stand or sit
or kneel that you see them, their hearts, your children, their children, their
families – and see Jesus, the Christ, who lived and died to set them free from
all the guilt and shame and the hurt and the pain. Jesus, the Christ, who stands
in the gap for us, who have pledged our allegiance through our baptismal vows –
Lord, God of Mercy, Hear our prayer.
I pray healing for these people, Oh
God, healing in their spirit, soul, body, and mind. From the tops of their heads
to the soles of their feet. May they leave the burdens of this Memorial Day
here in this sanctuary at your feet. May the receive the promised blessing of
being set free. May the walk forward ready to do your work and your will.
May their lips be cleansed and ready
to speak your truth.
May they live in the Spirit
according to your will – the Spirit that cries Abba! Father! Remaining your
children by adoption – heirs to a more glorious future, a life lived in you and
with you.
Mostly Lord, let their hearts be made
whole and their memories be made peaceful knowing that you care for them and
love them and those they have lost in uniform.
Amen.
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