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Your Memorial Various memorials have been created by man to remember deeds performed by earlier generations. Europe is littered with numerous cemeteries honoring those who paid the ultimate price during World Wars 1 and 2. Washington D.C. has the Lincoln Memorial, the Vietnam Wall, the Washington Monument, and other places remembering past presidents, statesmen, and heroes. While in Tula, Russia I had the opportunity to view some of the structures honoring the soldiers who stopped Nazi Germany from invading their city and thus stopping Hitler. Some memorials are constructed of stone, brick, steel, and others are made of memories. As Christians we think of the Lord’s Supper as the Memorial dedicated to remembering the death of Jesus on the cross for our sins. However, the Bible speaks of other memorials, such as the rainbow in Genesis 9. God placed the rainbow in the sky as His pledge to never destroy the world by flood again. Or the 12 stones piled up as Joshua and the children of Israel were entering the land of Canaan. "And these stones shall be for a memorial to the children of Israel forever" (Joshua 4.7b). Memorials are important because they remind us of what others have done before us. The eleventh chapter of Hebrews is dedicated to remembering great acts of faith in the Old Testament. Abel is mentioned in verse 4 due to his sacrifice to God. It ends with these words, “God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks.” There are numerous people in the New Testament who are remembered for their works; Dorcas is remembered in Acts 9 for her good deeds and Barnabas, for selling his property, laying it at the apostles’ feet for the distribution to the needy saints in Acts 4 and later for his work in spreading the Gospel. Some people are known for their evil deeds, Jezebel is known for worshipping Baal and standing against the prophets of God. We need to think of the memorials that we will leave behind. You read that last sentence properly, each of us will leave certain memorials behind. As we live our lives we perform certain deeds. I remember those who preached at the country congregation that we attended while I was a teenager: men such as Irvin Schultz, Houston Patton, Jim Berryman, Leonard Smith, Steve Slaughter, and many more. Their work in preaching the Gospel is remembered by those who grew up there during that time. I remember the works of my parents as they provided for us physically and spiritually. Mom, as she cooked on a wood stone in a house without indoor plumbing and other modern conveniences. Some of my memories include talking to her about the Bible while she ironed clothes or did other household chores. Dad, as he practiced songs at 5:30 in the morning, while getting ready for work or driving 2 hours after work so as to go to a Gospel Meeting and then driving 2 hours home. Today we are building memories for our children and those around us. Will they remember the sacrifices we are currently making? Most likely they will if we are truly making sacrifices. People will see our manner of life, our words, and our sincerity. Long after we are gone, our influence will remain just as those who have preceded us. Perhaps this is what is meant in Revelation 14.13, "Blessed [are] the dead who die in the Lord from now on." "Yes," says the Spirit, "that they may rest from their labors, and their works follow them." Our children will live as our memorial. "The righteous [man] walks in his integrity; His children [are] blessed after him" (Proverbs 20.7). Can we say our children have been blessed to have us as their mother or father? While I realize that not everyone will have children and some children will rebel against their parents, most will be a reflection of us. Their values will be what we have taught or not taught them. Thus we have the Proverb , "Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it" (Proverbs 22.6). I know I am a reflection of my parents and our children are a reflection of us. I remember hearing people say, "Your father will never be dead as long as you are alive." Such is often true. What kind of a memorial will our children be? Will they respect the word of God and follow the narrow path of God's word or will they take the broad path of worldliness? Our name will serve as a memorial to us. By name I mean both name and reputation. The value of a "good name" is mentioned in both Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. "A [good] name is to be chosen rather than great riches, Loving favor rather than silver and gold."(Proverbs 22.1) “A good name [is] better than precious ointment," (Ecclesiastes 7.1). How will you be remembered; as a good person who would never cheat anyone or as someone who others could not trust? Would you be remembered for your honor and bravery or for a lack of the same? As Proverbs 22.1 states, a man's reputation is of greater value than silver or gold. In fact, you cannot purchase a good reputation, you have to earn it. Why is it so precious? First, because it reflects you and your values. Second, because others will either accept you or reject you because of what they have heard about you. Third, because your reputation will be either a burden or a benefit to your children. A young man was about to leave for college when his father took him aside. He said, "Son I have not been able to give you much in life, but I have given you a good name. Take care of it." So, what kind of a name, or reputation, are you going to leave behind? David is known for being a man after God's own heart, 1 Samuel 13.14. Daniel was known for having the spirit of God, Daniel 5.14. Will the same be said for us? Finally, we can leave behind the name of Christian. People can say that we lived and died as a Christian. Indeed, all of the memorials mentioned above will be left behind except for this one. The name of Christ will go with us to the other side of the grave. --Dennis Tucker
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