Title: Never Forget

Date: 2007-07-01

Reference: Dueteronomy 8: 11-14

The USS New York was build with 24 tons of scrap steel from the World Trade Center. This ship will carry a crew of 360 sailors and 700 combat ready marines. The steel from the World Trade Center was melted down to cast the ship’s bow section. When it was poured into molds the steel workers treated it with total reverence. One said it was a special, even spiritual moment for everyone there. The ship’s motto is “Never Forget.”

This would be a good motto for us as we approach another Independence Day. We must never forget the sacrifices made for us by those upon whose legacy we continue to build. We’ve always been plagued with short memories. Ninety years ago President Wilson said: “America no longer remembers what we were therefore we do not know who we are today. We Americans should strive to build upon our strong foundation for a glorious future.” President Wilson could have been describing 2007 not 1917.

Our task today is to remember and Never Forget. We must never forget those who suffered at Valley Forge. The countless thousands of Americans from North and South who perished during the Civil War. We must never forget those who served in both World Wars, and every war and conflict since right down to the war in Iraq we are fighting today. We must never forget the sacrifices of previous generations of Americans who worked hard to build this nation. The labors of millions of immigrants from around the world whose labors have made this nation strong. We should never forget the sacrifices of grandparents, parents, friends and neighbors on our behalf.

Most of all we should never, ever forget the blessings of Almighty God. God has warned us time and again in the Bible that we are far more likely to forget when things are going well than when we face adversity and need God’s help. Trouble drives us into the arms of God. When things are going well we tend to forget the source of our blessings.

The Book of Dueteronomy contains Moses address to the people. Moses said: “Be very careful never to forget what you have seen God doing for you. May God’s miracles have a deep and permanent effect upon your lives. Tell your children and your grandchildren about the glorious miracles God did for you. And when the Lord your God has given you great cities full of good things, cities you did not build and wells you did not dig and vineyards you did not plant. And when you have eaten your full and can hold no more then beware lest you forget the Lord. When you are full don’t forget to be reverent to God and to serve God.”

Independence Day Celebrations began as soon as the colonies learned that the Declaration of Independence had been passed. The Declaration Of Independence was read in village greens. There were public celebrations and parades. In New York the equestrian statue of George III was melted down for bullets.

This year the celebrations continue. This is our chance to remember and honor the events and leaders who have shaped our country. Because we tend to forget we have always erected monuments to help us remember. On July 4th, 1848 dignitaries from around the country gathered to witness the laying of a cornerstone on the Washington Monument. July 4th 1865 grateful citizens gathered at Gettysburg to lay the cornerstone for the soldier’s monument.

On independence Day 1930 the face of George Washington was unveiled on Mount Rushmore in South Dakota. On the fourth of July 1934 a plaque to the Unknown Soldier was added at Arlington National Cemetery. In the most recent 4th of July celebration a cornerstone was laid, in 2004, at the Freedom Tower laid on the sight of the World Trade Center.

Never Forget. But we do. I picked up a book on the 4th of July entitled “A Star Spangled Birthday.” Included in the book was a 4th of July Quiz. Questions like how many members of the Continental Congress signed the Declaration of July 4th? How old was Thomas Jefferson when he wrote the Declaration? Who was the first signer to die? Who was the last signer to die? Where was the first meeting place of the Continental Congress? I have to tell you I didn’t do so well with this quiz. I was shocked at how much I had forgotten or never even knew about those momentous days in the history of our nation.

Even more frustrating for me today is our modern obsession with reinventing our history. Or judging the past by the standards of the present day. Recently there was an effort to remove the names of George Washington and Thomas Jefferson from elementary schools in New Orleans. The school board wanted to rename the two schools because both Washington and Jefferson were slave owners.

Yet another article described the very unorthodox religious views of Washington. In actuality Washington was born into a Godly Episcopal family in Virginia. He was taught the Scripture and how to live a Godly life from an early age. He learned to read by reading from the Bible.

Washington’s favorite book was Contemplations Moral and Divine. This book contained stories and illustrations of Christian Virtues. The Duke of York, Washington’s enemy during the Revolution, said: “Washington was the most virtuous man whose character and morality was the wonder of the world.”

Washington as General and President believed in providence. He often said: “The American people, above all people that have ever lived should be grateful to God for His Divine Providence.” He talked about Divine providence in his official proclamations and in his personal conversations. George Washington was a man of prayer. When a French Official visited congress he asked which was Washington. The answer was: “He is the one who falls to his knees when congress prays.

Each and every night he went to his study at 9:00 and spent time reading the Bible and praying. He rose at 4:00a.m. for another hour of Bible Study and Prayer. His diary is full of references to church attendance in the morning and evening. He collected sermons. When he couldn’t get to church he would read these sermons aloud to his family. Recorded in his personal prayer diary is this prayer.”Pardon I beseech thee my sins. Remove them from thy presence. And accept me for the merits of thy Son Jesus Christ. Cover my sins with obedience of thy dear son offered on the cross for me. Thou gavest thou Son to die for me.” As he died, he crossed his hands over his breast and said: “This well Father. Into Thy mercy I commend my soul.”

This doesn’t sound like a man who was ambivalent or hostile to the Christian faith. Washington, it seems, was not the secular free thinker we portray him to be today.

Rather it sounds to me like the Father of our Country knew God well and trusted in God personally and professionally. He was an orthodox believer whose faith guided his actions.

Nor was the Continental Congress indifferent about their faith. Immediately after creating the Declaration of Independence, congress voted to purchase and import 20k copies of the Bible for the people of this nation.

We remember and I believe we still trust in God. In a recent NBC poll 84% of the persons contacted said they desired to keep “In God we Trust” on our money. And the same number was in favor of keeping “Under God” in our pledge of Allegiance. This is a pretty commanding public response.

God has blessed our nation. Our response is gratitude. Meister Eckhard said: “If the only prayer you say in your life is thank you, that prayer would suffice.” John Wesley said: “Thanksgiving is inseparable from true prayer.”

An immigrant girl from Ireland once said: “God must listen to the prayers of Americans real close since God has given Americans so much to be thankful for.” Today we are absolutely determined to remember and never forget. We offer our prayers of thanksgiving to God who has sustained us, protected us, and who guides us. We offer our prayers of gratitude for those many millions who have gone before us and who have sacrificed for us. We offer our prayers of gratitude for those thousands of young persons who are once again in harm’s way. We pray for peace and an end to the violence in Iraq and around the world.

I would like to close by sharing a prayer offered by President Washington for our nation. He prayed: Almighty God. We make our earnest prayer that thou wilt keep the United States in thy holy protection. That you will incline the hearts of our citizens to cultivate a spirit of subordination and obedience to government and to entertain a brotherly affection and love for one another and all their fellow citizens. Be pleased to dispose us all to do justice, love mercy and to demean ourselves with charity, humility, and pacific temper of mind which were the characteristics of the Divine Author of our blessed religion. Without these we can never hope to be a happy nation. Grant this supplication through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen