"Red, White and Blue"

The red is for the blood they shed,

Some came home, but some are dead,

About us may it not be said,

That we ever forgot, we owe each one a lot.

The blue is for their courage shown,

They fought and died, did not come home,

From distant lands and briny foam,

To them we give salute, with honor no dispute.

The white is for their hearts so pure,

The trials and death they did endure,

We owe a debt, and that’s for sure,

We never can repay, but we give thanks today.

The red, the white and yes, the blue,

They bled and died for me and you,

The sacrifice so great, it’s true,

For freedom’s holy cause, with thankful hearts we pause.

“They placed their hope in a better life after the resurrection…” (Hebrews 11:15, NLT)

The end of Hebrews chapter eleven lists the victories that people of faith enjoyed. It’s a litany of the miraculous power of God! But then there is a bit of a shift. It goes from great miracles in behalf of the faithful to terrible suffering and martyrdom because of faith. What is the message here? Sometimes God moves to deliver people and change everything. And that’s the kind of miracle we pray for and enjoy talking about. But then, there are times when God does not change everything, He just changes us. The circumstances are terrible, but there is grace to go through the trial and suffering. Those who died in service to our country are worthy of our honor. And so are those who faithfully serve the Lord in spite of difficulty and death. Paul said: “For me to live is Christ and to die is gain.” (Phil. 1:21) He not only was willing to die, but considered death a promotion. May we all consider it to be the same.

Lord, help us to honor you, live or die, in Jesus’ name.

Photo shared by our friend, Brent Prince. Used by permission. Thanks, Brent, and God bless you.