Our Band Chaplin who is also a piper gave the Invocation at a memorial to honor the Fallen.
We found it so moving that we want to share it with others.
We found it so moving that we want to share it with others.
A Tribute to the Fallen
by Dr. J. Rankin McGougan of Guns-n-Hoses Pipes-n-Drums
I’ve had the privilege of serving as a local Pastor and as a Chaplain in this community for well over two decades, but my greatest honor is to be part of Guns-n-Hoses Pipes-n-Drums because of our commitment to publicly demonstrate our support for those who have chosen to serve even at their own peril.
We have just come through the season of Easter where the church celebrates our Lord’s sacrifice on the cross and his resurrection from the tomb. Now the empty tomb and that rugged cross have become memorials to that sacrifice.
Now we stand here today at another memorial. It is a memorial to those who have chosen to serve and protect and now have paid the ultimate sacrifice so that the rest of us can enjoy safety and security.
I counted over 20 times in scripture where the importance of memorials is highlighted so that those who come behind will not forget the price people have paid for our privileges.
When we turn on the news, open our laptops, or look at our iPads we come face to face with the reality that we live in tumultuous times – That reality serves to highlight the quality and character of the men and women who, knowing full well the conditions in which they will serve – still chose to don the uniform. Still, chose to serve and protect. Still chose to be willing to sacrifice – and we will not forget their choice and their service and their willing sacrifice.
Memorials like this serve as a vivid reminder of the fragile nature of life itself and settings like these vividly highlight the reality of our mortality.
The scriptures describe life as a vapor that you see for a short time and then it fades away. They picture it as the breadth of a man’s hand and as a flower that blooms in the morning and withers by sundown.
The book of Ecclesiastes reminds us that for everything in life, there is a season and a time for everything under heaven. There is a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to harvest, a time to laugh and a time to cry, a time to rejoice, and a time to mourn. Now at this time, we mourn and remember those who have paid the ultimate price.
We are all vividly aware that none of us have a promise of tomorrow. But those who choose to serve have willfully immersed themselves in an environment where circumstances, situations, and other individuals can have a dramatic influence on the quality and duration of that mortality – and we will not forget.
I’ve always appreciated Ronald Reagan's statement on the 40th anniversary of D-day on June 6th, 1984, at Normandy France when he said in honor of those who served:
We will always remember. We will always be proud.
We will always be prepared. So that we may always be free.
So, to those who chose to serve and protect and have fallen and paid the ultimate sacrifice so that we can be free, safe, and secure, we gratefully offer a heartfelt thank you for your service and your sacrifice.
To the families and loved ones who now walk in the shadow of that loss, we declare we will always be proud, and we will always remember, and this memorial will help ensure their memory in perpetuity.
And to those who are currently serving we honor your commitment and your sacrifice, and by the grace of God, may your name never appear on this monument as one who has fallen. – But should that occur?
Because you were prepared to make that sacrifice, we will always be proud, and we will always remember.
by Dr. J. Rankin McGougan of Guns-n-Hoses Pipes-n-Drums
I’ve had the privilege of serving as a local Pastor and as a Chaplain in this community for well over two decades, but my greatest honor is to be part of Guns-n-Hoses Pipes-n-Drums because of our commitment to publicly demonstrate our support for those who have chosen to serve even at their own peril.
We have just come through the season of Easter where the church celebrates our Lord’s sacrifice on the cross and his resurrection from the tomb. Now the empty tomb and that rugged cross have become memorials to that sacrifice.
Now we stand here today at another memorial. It is a memorial to those who have chosen to serve and protect and now have paid the ultimate sacrifice so that the rest of us can enjoy safety and security.
I counted over 20 times in scripture where the importance of memorials is highlighted so that those who come behind will not forget the price people have paid for our privileges.
When we turn on the news, open our laptops, or look at our iPads we come face to face with the reality that we live in tumultuous times – That reality serves to highlight the quality and character of the men and women who, knowing full well the conditions in which they will serve – still chose to don the uniform. Still, chose to serve and protect. Still chose to be willing to sacrifice – and we will not forget their choice and their service and their willing sacrifice.
Memorials like this serve as a vivid reminder of the fragile nature of life itself and settings like these vividly highlight the reality of our mortality.
The scriptures describe life as a vapor that you see for a short time and then it fades away. They picture it as the breadth of a man’s hand and as a flower that blooms in the morning and withers by sundown.
The book of Ecclesiastes reminds us that for everything in life, there is a season and a time for everything under heaven. There is a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to harvest, a time to laugh and a time to cry, a time to rejoice, and a time to mourn. Now at this time, we mourn and remember those who have paid the ultimate price.
We are all vividly aware that none of us have a promise of tomorrow. But those who choose to serve have willfully immersed themselves in an environment where circumstances, situations, and other individuals can have a dramatic influence on the quality and duration of that mortality – and we will not forget.
I’ve always appreciated Ronald Reagan's statement on the 40th anniversary of D-day on June 6th, 1984, at Normandy France when he said in honor of those who served:
We will always remember. We will always be proud.
We will always be prepared. So that we may always be free.
So, to those who chose to serve and protect and have fallen and paid the ultimate sacrifice so that we can be free, safe, and secure, we gratefully offer a heartfelt thank you for your service and your sacrifice.
To the families and loved ones who now walk in the shadow of that loss, we declare we will always be proud, and we will always remember, and this memorial will help ensure their memory in perpetuity.
And to those who are currently serving we honor your commitment and your sacrifice, and by the grace of God, may your name never appear on this monument as one who has fallen. – But should that occur?
Because you were prepared to make that sacrifice, we will always be proud, and we will always remember.