Remember Veterans and the Military
This year on Friday, November 10, many Americans will pause to commemorate Veterans Day in honor of our veterans of the United States Armed Forces. The usual date is always November 11,but this year it falls on a Saturday. So Friday has been set aside when state and federal buildings will be closed for business and ceremonies will be held throughout the nation. Yet, some cities and small towns will still have their parades on Saturday, many starting at 11 a.m.
This holiday, now known as Veterans Day, is not only celebrated in remembrance of the date when World War I ended in Europe, but to remember veterans who served in wars that followed. Flags. Picnics. Family gatherings to swap stories.
Our Founding Fathers faced dangers when they signed their names to our constitution—they could be killed for opposing England’s tyranny. Men and women through the decades have defended that document that gives us freedom. Our cousin, Huey, for example, survived the Bataan Death march in World War II and he later told me about his experience as a POW.
Many of us can remember when our community observed a special day. On November 11th at precisely 11:00 a.m. each year a parade made its way down our Main Street. Bands played patriotic songs and groups of veterans and Boy and Girl Scout troops marched. Civic leaders waved from their cars while hundreds gathered on the sidewalks watching the parade go by.
Let’s look at the history:
World War I officially ended when the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, in the Palace of Versailles in France. But fighting had ceased seven months earlier when an armistice between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. Thus, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of “the war to end all wars,” according to older documents.
In November 1919, President Wilson proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day. The United States Congress officially recognized it when it passed a concurrent resolution on June 4, 1926.The resolution even suggested that citizens commemorate the day with thanksgiving and prayer. It further indicated in other messages also to briefly stop business at 11a.m. in observance. The original plan was to display flags and encourage parades. (1)
In 1954, the word “Armistice” was replaced with “Veterans.” and November 11th became a day to honor American veterans of all wars.
I hope that we will thank God for the those we honor as we stop to commemorate Veterans Day.
Prayer: Lord, Thank You for the privilege of living in this nation whose forefathers lay the foundation for us to enjoy freedom. Thank You for all the men and women who have defended it over the years through our military services. Thank You for those who continue to defend it. Bless them with wisdom and safety—those who serve and their families who make sacrifices that they can do so. I ask in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Scripture: “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom”. (2 Corinthians 3:17 NIV)
“Stand fast, therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with the yoke of bondage.” (Galatians 5:1 NKJV)
1.U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs https://www.va.gov/opa/vetsday/history.asp
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