I was privileged to preach at the chapel service at the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod International Center on the anniversary of D-day. I had watched from early in the morning the proceedings at the beaches and the cemeteries in France. Those were very moving as they have always been, but these are especially poignant because these folks who fought there will probably be gone the next time around. This is a time when we are starting to realize that we are loosing a common history and memories that bound us to a common goal and a common future.
I dutifully offered prayers and thanksgivings as it should be. I left with the reminder that God is the God of history and that history meets it’s reason and it’s ending at the cross of Christ. Wars happen because nations and nation states want to define reality and protect whatever future they are hoping for at any given historical moment. God directs history and wraps up all history in Christ the alpha and omega; the beginning and the end; the one who was and is and is to come.
So remember all our service personnel and pray for them. Thank them and God for their service. As the remembrances in France end, remember Eisenhower’s words about those “crusaders” that we will never see their like again.
