Every year on Memorial Day, my parents would take us to visit the graves of family members who had died. We took flowers, water, and a trowel to plant flowers next to the headstone. Reading the inscriptions helped to learn a little about the person if it was someone we hadn’t known, but also my mom or dad would tell stories about them to keep them in remembrance.

Some people might view this as morbid, visiting the dead. Or perhaps they would see it as unnecessary. I saw it as a way to learn family history and was fascinated by stories of people I was related to and what happened to them. Sometimes the story would be a funny memory and sometimes a very sad one.

I grew up in the Midwest but moved to the Southwest and raised my family there. We didn’t have family to visit on Memorial Day, but I did try to keep alive stories I’d heard as a child. There was the story of my grandfather telling my uncle he couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn after he missed a shot at a rabbit. My uncle responded that he could hit grandpa’s hat if he threw it. Grandpa threw the hat (his favorite) and my uncle shot a neat hole right through the hat. Grandpa was not happy. I also shared about the triplets born before I was born and the three only lived a few hours. So very sad.

Remembering and keeping a memorial is something taught in the Bible. It was important that events and commands would be repeated and passed on to help people remember what was important. This is what God said about the importance of passing on His commandments. They were to be remembered throughout the generations.

“And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” Deuteronomy 6:6-9 (ESV)

We are also, as Christians, called to remember Jesus and the sacrifice He gave for us. And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” Luke 22:19 (ESV)

Memorial Day is not just about remembering family members that might have passed on before us, but can also be a time to reinforce the practice of remembering Jesus and what He did, how He gave His life for all people. For us, and for those around us, remembering Jesus is the most important memorial of all.

Take time today to share with someone about the incredible gift Jesus gave to us all. Bring out those proverbial flowers, dig in the soil, plant and water. Grow remembrances that will last a lifetime.

Have a blessed Memorial Day.