CSN - Sunday LightWing Messages - Remembering those who gave their lives that others could live in Freedom
5/25/2025
“Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. Just as no branch can bear fruit by itself unless it remains in the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me.
I am the vine and you are the branches. The one who remains in Me, and I in him, will bear much fruit. For apart from Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in Me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers. Such branches are gathered up, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you remain in Me and My words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to My Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, proving yourselves to be My disciples.
As the Father has loved Me, so have I loved you. Remain in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will remain in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and remain in His love. I have told you these things so that My joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.
This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.
You are My friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not understand what his master is doing. But I have called you friends, because everything I have learned from My Father I have made known to you.” John 15:4-15 (Berean Study Bible)
Last week we offered messages of light focused upon appreciation for the men and women of the Armed Forces. Tomorrow we honor those men and women of the Armed Forces who gave everything they had in the pursuit and establishment of Freedom over chaos and tyranny. And, for those unaware, tyranny is the manifestation of the existence of evil in our world. Wherever it rears up, it is a definite testament to the existence of evil in our nation and in the world. It is now required for people of faith to stand up in such a time of tremendous tribulation.
The LightWing edition today offers a message about more than the remembrance of individuals who gave their lives, but the reconnection to our soul as a nation – what it is that makes the land of Liberty great. It is really not the power, prestige, or wealth that makes America a great nation – especially as it once was. It became great because God blessed this nation as a champion of Freedom and there were those who were willing to give their lives that Freedom could survive in such a dark and chaotic world. It is time Americans realize this and regain such a position in God’s Providence.
With Memorial Day coming tomorrow, it seems to me that without those who “gave their lives that [our] nation might live…” as Lincoln put it that America would have been only a momentary experiment in the history of the world. Memorial Day was born after Lincoln even gave his own life that our nation might live, born from the ashes of the destruction and massive number of deaths from the ‘Civil War.’ Over 600,000 boys and men died because of the war. On personal levesl, it is really hard to deal with the pain that death brings to those who survive loved ones who have died, but the American population was devastated after the Civil War, not only because of the deaths of so many good people, as well as the physical destruction upon the land, but also the nation’s survivors were emotionally scarred after the war.
Fortunately, for us far removed from that time, Abraham Lincoln helps to put the horrors of such a time in proper perspective. His words at Gettysburg helped to frame the war by offering his clarity of its purpose and to ensure that those who gave their lives had not died in vain. This war represented a showdown between those who wanted to retain the Republic and those who wanted to deviate from and destroy the founding ideals and principles of our Judeo-Christian heritage embedded in the foundation of the nation’s government. In essence, it represented a major showdown between good and evil in such a time.
The LightWing edition today offers two messages focused on the remembrance of our soul – what truly makes America great. The first message is Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, in order we could refresh our memories of what it was that he did say, rather than what others have claimed he said. The second message is one I offer from an article I wrote in 2021, during the time of
COVID, when many across the nation, especially for those of us in the land of “Lock Down” in California, were suffering under the birth pangs of the infancy of tyranny. It is so very important to hold onto the meaning for Memorial Day, for today (and tomorrow) for all those who would like to make Memorial Day a bit more memorable. May God’s Will prevail in such a time as this.
Editors’ Note: We hope readers could receive as many of the features and wise perspectives that may be of interest. Recently, Substack performed a removal of email subscribers from our initial email list. We lost a number of “dead” email addresses in the “purge.” We hope that you who remain as our loyal readers could also become messengers of Light and spread the word from out LightWing Messages to friends, relatives or those who you believe would benefit from our Sunday messages. Also, read, enjoy, and absorb and share the articles and links to the important stories of the news cycle with those whom you hope would benefit from the Citizen Sentinels Network. Please share our editions, or invite those you love to get a free subscription – Citizen Voice on Substack
These words are being freely offered to you – intended to shine light unto our paths, as written: “Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.” Proverbs 29:18 - (KJV)
May God bless our readers & their loved ones. May God be with All His Children!
May we truly seek an honest and genuine relationship with our Father in Heaven. May we seek His intervention in such a divisive time in our nation;s history. May we seek to be humble and repent for our wickedness. May we strive for HIs Kingdom and seek for His Righteousness always. Let our love for Him light up our pathways going forward.
Gettysburg Address
By President Abraham Lincoln
November 19, 1863
Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.
But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate -- we can not consecrate -- we can not hallow -- this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced.
It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.
Memorial Day:
Remembering the Preciousness of Freedom
By Dennis Jamison 5/30/21
Memorial Day, in some ways, like the topic of death itself, has a tendency to conjure up issues people would rather not discuss. It is so much easier to do some backyard barbeque with family and friends (especially now that we know the COVID lockdowns are not based on medical rationale but on political manipulation). Sadly, in the backyard gatherings, or even planned public events, the deeper topic concerning those who sacrificed their lives for a higher purpose, is not fully addressed. It may be on people’s minds, in the deeper recesses of their thoughts, but talking about the willing sacrifice of one’s life for one’s nation, or for the greater cause of freedom, is not often a topic easily dealt with in a casual manner.
The real reason we celebrate Memorial Day is not to have an excuse for the backyard barbeques or a three-day weekend holiday. Memorial Day was born from the ashes of destruction and incredible loss as a result of the American Civil War. Tragically, over 620,000 men and boys died in the American Civil War, more than in any other war in which the United States has been involved. The incredibly painful experience of the loss of hundreds of thousands of men and boys prompted the Veteran’s Association to provide a practical means (initially known as “Decoration Day”) for those families and survivors to mourn and honor their loved ones and family members. Memorial Day was born as Lincoln prescribed in his Gettysburg Address — a day to honor those who gave their lives so that a nation so conceived and so dedicated could survive.
To Abraham Lincoln it was not a certainty that the Union would prevail. It is difficult to reason differently when Lincoln used the words in his Gettysburg Address: “Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation or any nation so conceived (conceived in Liberty) and so dedicated (dedicated to Equality) can long endure.” This sentiment was expressed by Lincoln in the middle of the war - not at the end. It is a sobering thought that such a nation, so conceived and so dedicated, had no assurance of lasting for any significant period of time. It is disturbingly similar to confronting one’s own mortality, although on a national scale.
The Civil War left the population devastated, in many ways, but in the years following the destruction, the nation managed to pull back together again. The country survived despite incredible odds that it would not. Unfortunately today, most Americans seem to take it for granted that the United States would have endured the civil war. However, hindsight is insulated from the intensity and turbulence of the moment. Additionally, as the nation moved beyond this incredibly dark time, Memorial Day continued to represent the day to remember the sacrifice of those who gave their lives in service to their nation on some distant or foreign battlefields. But, because of this passage of time, and other wars in other years, the original purpose for the creation of Memorial Day has grown dim in the minds of Americans.
Refreshing our understanding of Lincoln’s words in the Gettysburg Address can help us refresh our appreciation of the preciousness of Freedom itself. He delivered his address in November of 1863, just 87 years after the birth of the United States; it would be about a year and a half before the war ended. The U.S. was deeply politically divided and horribly embattled “in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated can long endure.” The nation was essentially fighting for its survival in such a dark and desperate time, and there was no guarantee the nation would be able to survive. New American patriots had to be willing to inherit the vision of the Founding Fathers, to take ownership of that inheritance, and to be willing to fight to preserve the very ideals of freedom established by the founding generations. American patriots in that time also had to be willing to lay down their lives for such an inheritance.
The Founders pursued the dream of independence from the centralized authority of Great Britain -- independence from the absolute rule of the monarch whom they viewed as a tyrant. But, that dream of political independence from a tyrannical government was the dream of Freedom for all people.
The Founding Fathers were in a state of mind that enabled them to “dream big.” They were descendants from a system of government that struggled with dreams of freedom from tyranny before. The Magna Carta represented the result of one such struggle to secure freedom. The English Civil War represented such a struggle for freedom from tyranny. But, those glorious efforts were not successful in establishing a land of freedom. Tyranny always rose up in one form or another, to pull people back down under the yoke of a monarch’s dominion, or as in the case of the French Revolution, the tyranny of the “people,” which represented blatant democracy.
The War for Independence only established a foundation for Freedom. But, patriots had to be willing to lay down their lives for the sake of Freedom. Patrick Henry voiced what many were willing to do:
It is in vain sir, to extenuate the matter. Gentlemen may cry, Peace, Peace — but there is no peace. The war is actually begun… Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me Liberty or give me death!
Patrick Henry’s impassioned ultimatum reverberated throughout the colonies, and many patriots took his sincere sentiments to heart. They were willing to stand against British tyranny. In Lexington and Concord, brave men and boys willingly gave their lives for the sake of Freedom. There was no United States at that moment in time. There was no nation that would honor their deaths as they sacrificed all that they had - especially their precious lives. They gave their sweat, their tears, and also shed their blood for an ideal of Freedom.
In the same manner, those who were willing to sacrifice their lives for others’ freedom ignited the sentiments woven into Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. Lincoln got it right in those desperate days of conflict in the Republic. He ultimately grasped that the “peculiar institution” of slavery in the South was the substantial antithesis of Freedom, and it was the spark behind the Emancipation Proclamation. Lincoln had prayed to God in his own struggle with this destructive institution that had been perpetuated from the days under colonial rule of the king. It was an ugly remnant of centralized authority under a tyrant.
Yet, it was the blood of patriots during the Civil War that advanced Freedom for all of the people. To carry forward the torch of Freedom is what Lincoln urged in his time, urging the survivors, the living, “to be dedicated to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us — that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion — that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain.”
It is not that complex a task to recognize the “cause” for which the honored dead of the Union Army sacrificed their lives. It went far beyond “for the sake of their country,” far beyond a mere “nationalistic” goal. Abraham Lincoln’s conclusion expressed his hope was that “this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” This is what we have inherited. Patriots’ blood advanced the cause of Freedom. How precious do we hold Freedom?
May God bless America’s sacrifice for those who gave all they had for other’s freedom!
Remember also to
Celebrate Natural Family Month!
A positive approach to repairing our nation. James Harrison, National Director of Natural Family Strong www.naturalfamilystrong.com is honoring a new holiday to celebrate
the Family! In concert with other local community leaders, Natural Family Strong is proposing all Americans consider the time period between Mother's Day in May thru Father's Day in June as an annual celebration of the Natural Family. It is now! They need help to make it happen.
There is already some traction with that effort because New Hampshire has passed the first official State Natural Family Proclamation. State Representative Claudine Burnham, was able to get this passed in the Granite State. Other states need to follow New Hampshire and officially pass a state Natural Family Proclamation. Contact local leaders to help to make it happen.
Suggested links:
Natural Family Month there are four informative links on the site including a section that shows you how to have a natural-family-festival or just sign the Natural Family Foundation Resolution
The dates of the celebration this year starting on mother's day May 11th. You can order yard signs, print out to hand to family friends and neighbors in such a time as this.
For more information, please call 614-890-4008 for more details; don't hesitate to leave a message. Or reply to: christianminman@gmail.com Let us know if you’re interested in participating.
Let’s Keep Celebrating Natural Family Month!
Additional Faith & Spirit-filled links…
From United States Air Force Academy Band: We Are Americans - Memorial Day - A Special Tribute – 5/25/2022
From WTVC NewsChannel 9: Standing Ovation: Rising Fawn Sarg - Sgt. Christiana Ball Sings Some Gave All – 11/17/2014
From Nautical PappyStu: Memorial Day 2021 - We Remember - 5/27/21
From McAfee & Taft: Remember & Honor — Memorial Day Tribute 2025
From Taking Chance. A Memorial Day Tribute: Taking Chance. A Memorial Day Tribute - 5/25/2019
From Gen. Douglas MacArthur (at 82): "Duty, Honor, Country" - West Point, May 12, 1962
From Trump's Pre-Inauguration: The Battle Hymn Of The Republic - Trump's Pre-Inauguration Jan 19th 2017
From Infidel Warrior: Ronald Regan’s Warriors Pledge Speech - 1/20/1981
From Steeljaw Scribe - YouTube: “Once to Every Man and Nation” – 5/24/2008
From YouTube: MEMORIAL DAY TRIBUTE--GO REST HIGH ON THAT MOUNTAIN - 2/21/2017
From World Outreach Church: Strategies for Spiritual Warfare | Allen Jackson Ministries – 5/17/23
From The Good Shepherd Ministries: Memorial Day Tribute Video – 5/28/2022
From The American Minute with Bill Federer: Memorial Day --Honoring American Heroes of Courage, Sacrifice, & Faith - American Minute with Bill Federer
Podcast - From Dutch Sheets Ministries: God, Government, and the Church | Give Him 15: Daily Prayer with Dutch | May 22, 2025
ICYMIPodcast – From Kingdom League International: Lesson 5 in the School of Tyrants – Evil Prospers When Good Men do Nothing – 5/16/25
From Dr. Preston Moon: Peacebuilding & Universal Principles #shorts - YouTube – 2/14/22
From The American Minute with Bill Federer: – American Minute for May 29 – posted 5/28/21
It is important to receive God’s blessings and fruit that continue to come as a result of the 2024 election. Yet, it is more important to maintain a vigilant awareness and prayer focus to protect the efforts being made during this time of the new Administration – an eradication of the damage that was done to America as we are proceeding to move from the past into the future.
