Thank You for Serving

"I will not drown in shallow water

Not with your love within my reach

I did not come this far to falter

And will not rest until I'm free

You are the sun, you are the flower

You are the wind across the sea

And I will kneel here at your alter

And pray you'll take my soul to keep

O, precious one, you are the mountain

You are the earth beneath my feet

In you we're one, now and forever

In you I find the love in me

Through your love my eyes are open

Through your love, I'll learn to see

And in your name bread is broken

By your grace I'll rest in peace

I will not drown in shallow water

Not with your love within my reach

I did not come this far to falter

And will not rest until I'm free

Through your love my eyes are open

Through your love, I'll learn to see

And in your name bread is broken

By your grace I'll rest in peace

I will not drown in shallow water

Not with your love within my reach

I did not come this far to falter

And will not rest until I'm free

I will not rest until I'm free

Until I'm free

~ Randy Travis ~

On Decoration Day, decades ago, after church services on Sunday, we'd have dinner on the grounds. All the women would bring their best dishes, we'd drink gallons of sweet ice tea and hot coffee, finish with pies, cakes, cookies. Then, we'd gather the bouquets of field flowers, plastic flowers and some store bought flowers and we'd decorate the graves of those family members who'd served in war. Stories were told, people remembered, tears shed...good times, all, even in the sadness. Today, how many of us remember those service men and women left on foreign fields having given the ultimate sacrifice - their lives?

Now it's called Memorial Day and not many people decorate graves or have dinner on the grounds. We've lost something and our lives are the poorer for it. We all talk about slowing down, how many do? We all talk about simplifying our lives, how many do? We all talk about eating together, how many of us do? 

So very much, I miss talking with Dave. We'd sit and talk for hours or we'd sit and enjoy the silence for hours. We lived slow lives, quite lives, lives filled with grace and a lot of love. If your life needs more grace, more love, more quiet, more slow...it's well within your reach. Today, promise yourself and your family the gift of time...time to slow down, to eat at the same table, together, every night this week. What is more important than your family and your family time together? Today, on Memorial Day, make a promise to make memories together. They don't have to be monumentous memories; they can be as simple as greeting the day together with a hot cup of coffee or taking a quiet walk. Those simple memories will stand you in good stead when the cold winds blow and, trust me, you should be preparing now because those winds are gathering now.

Blessings ~ service men and women ~ Randy Travis ~ Decoration Day ~ Dave ~ Memorial Day ~ dinner on the grounds ~