Honour for Those Who Died for Freedom

During the First World War, in the Flanders region of Belgium, Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae served as a gunner and medical officer. In the midst of the fighting, he lost a close friend and performed the burial service himself. In his eulogy he noted how poppies quickly grew around the graves of those who had died.

The next day, he composed a poem, “In Flanders Fields,” while sitting in the back of an ambulance. In part it says: In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row That mark our place; and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, fly Scarce heard amid the guns below.

Inspired by the poem, people began wearing poppies on Remembrance Day to honour the soldiers and sailors who have died in times of war. This tradition of honour and respect continues today.

As we celebrate Remembrance Day, we recognize the tremendous sacrifices made by those who have volunteered to serve our country and especially by those who have paid the ultimate price – and for their families.

The Bible says: “By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren” (1 John 3:16).

Thank God for the freedom we have to worship God and to live our lives as we choose. We honour those who bought and paid for that freedom with their lives in the past, for those who protect it in the present, and those who will defend it in the future.

God bless you,