Honoring Those Who Served, and Serving Those Who Struggle
Each week, as we gather around the tables — Wednesday nights in Welland and Thursday nights in St. Catharines — we meet people from every walk of life.
Some are new faces, others have become familiar friends.
And among them, we often meet men and women who once served in the Canadian Armed Forces — people who gave their strength and youth to defend the freedoms we now enjoy.
This week, as our nation pauses to remember, we also remember them — not in silence alone, but through service, compassion, and presence at the table.
“Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.”
— John 15:13 (ESV)
The Weight of Service
Many of these veterans now face homelessness, loneliness, and a deep sense of loss.
Their uniforms have long been packed away, but their stories still carry the weight of duty — the memories of serving others at great personal cost.
When they sit across from us, we see more than need.
We see men and women who were once servants, protectors, and providers — people who stood for something bigger than themselves.
And now, in a season of hardship, they remind us that even those who once carried others sometimes need to be carried themselves.
“The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.”
— Psalm 34:18 (ESV)
Lessons for the Next Generation
For our young volunteers, these encounters leave a mark.
They reveal that service takes many forms — some on the frontlines, some at a folding table in the cold.
And they remind us that compassion isn’t about rewarding worthiness — it’s about reflecting God’s mercy.
It’s tempting to think of care in terms of who “deserves” it, but the gospel teaches us something radically different.
Mercy never begins with merit — it begins with God’s sovereign grace.
We don’t serve because people have earned our kindness.
We serve because God has chosen, by His grace, to love and redeem us first — not according to our will, or our works, but according to His mercy.
“So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy.”
— Romans 9:16 (ESV)
When a young volunteer offers a meal, a blanket, or a smile to a veteran, they’re not performing charity — they’re participating in grace.
It’s a picture of election in motion: undeserved love extended freely, because we have received undeserved love ourselves.
Remember and Serve
Remembrance Day calls us to reflect on sacrifice — to honor those who stood for country, freedom, and one another.
But remembrance for the believer is never passive.
It must move our hearts to serve.
We honor by showing up.
We remember by extending mercy.
We give thanks by giving care.
Every handshake, every prayer, every cup of hot coffee offered in Christ’s name becomes an act of remembrance — not only for their sacrifice, but for His.
Because at its heart, our ministry isn’t about what we give — it’s about what He has already given us: grace without condition, love without measure, hope without end.
“We love because he first loved us.”
— 1 John 4:19 (ESV)
A Final Word
This Remembrance Day, as the city grows colder and the nights longer, we remember those who once stood between peace and peril — and we serve them now with warmth, dignity, and prayer.
We teach our youth that service and sacrifice are not relics of history but daily acts of faith.
We remind them that to serve is to love, and to love is to reflect the mercy of a sovereign God.
Because at the end of every act of service — whether on the battlefield or at a simple folding table — stands the same truth:
grace is not earned; it is given.
“Let all that you do be done in love.”
— 1 Corinthians 16:14 (ESV)
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