A Memory Owed: A Call to Remember 

Remembering our reliance today on God’s deliverance

Situated midway between the small town of Horncastle and the seaside resort of Skegness, the Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Museum is the home of the legendary Lancaster Bomber NX611 ‘Just Jane’. The museum is the site of former RAF East Kirkby, quite close to RAF Coningsby, wartime base of 617 Squadron ‘The Dambusters’. 

It was on Thursday, May 8th last year, the 80th anniversary of VE day, that I had the amazing opportunity to land on the grass runway at the museum, and have my vintage Piper PA20 pictured by aviation photographers as the museum’s restored Avro Lancaster and De Havilland Mosquito taxied past with their mighty 27-litre Roll-Royce Merlin V12 engines roaring.

I was the only private aviator to land there during that very special day when the nation celebrated Victory in Europe Day. The controller at RAF Coningsby gave permission to enter the Military Air Traffic Zone, not above six hundred feet, and seconds later the smooth, well-kept grass runway, which represented a safe haven for those brave returning WWII pilots, was just ahead. It was an amazing day I will never forget. 

Memories of World War II

Many will remember the now 90-year-old actor James Bolam, star of the sixties sitcom ‘The Likely Lads’. In this short clip, the actor delivers a heartfelt message telling us what it was like to contribute to the short film, ‘A Memory Owed,’ and his personal thoughts on the importance of Remembrance.

Some eighty years since the end of World War II, the lessons of history have not been learned.

Almost half a million people have already watched the 30-minute film, free to watch on YouTube, much of which was filmed at the museum I visited. The film’s introduction reads: “Bound by unspoken grief, reclusive 91-year-old Stan and his young carer find unexpected solace on the windswept plains of a once-bustling WWII airfield, where memory still lingers.” 

Lessons unlearned

It is a touching story, but also a reminder that some eighty years since the end of World War II, the lessons of history have not been learned. Hard-won freedoms are slipping away from us, the threat of conflict on the European continent is with us once again, and our mighty deliverance by God from the threat of Naziism is largely unknown to the nation’s young. We must remember and remind others that it was God who delivered the nation in 1945 and only God can deliver us now. 

Moses repeatedly urges Israel to remember God’s actions, commands, and covenant so that they remain faithful. 

Psalm 78:1-7 “My people, hear my teaching; listen to the words of my mouth. I will open my mouth with a parable; I will utter hidden things, things from of old – things we have heard and known, things our ancestors have told us. We will not hide them from their descendants; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, His power, and the wonders He has done. He decreed statutes for Jacob and established the law in Israel, which He commanded our ancestors to teach their children, so that the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children. Then they would put their trust in God and would not forget his deeds but would keep His commands.” 

The importance of remembrance is a major theme throughout the book of Deuteronomy. In this Moses repeatedly urges Israel to remember God’s actions, commands, and covenant so that they remain faithful. 

Eight principles

Several key principles emerge:

1. Remember God’s acts in history

Israel is told to remember how God delivered them from Egypt, guided them through the wilderness, and provided for them (Deuteronomy 5:15; 15:15; 24:18). The purpose is gratitude, trust, and obedience.

2. Remember through teaching

Parents are instructed to teach God’s words diligently to their children and discuss them in daily life (Deuteronomy 6:7). Memory is preserved through intentional transmission across generations.

3. Remember by rehearing and restating God’s Word

The law is to be read, recited, written, and kept close at hand (Deuteronomy 6:6–9; 17:18–20; 31:10–13). The principle is that regular engagement with God’s Word keeps memory alive.

4. Remember with visible reminders

Israel is instructed to place God’s commands on doorposts and gates and bind them as signs (Deuteronomy 6:8–9; 11:18–20). Physical reminders help reinforce spiritual truths.

5. Remember in times of prosperity

A recurring warning is not to forget God when life becomes comfortable (Deuteronomy 8:11–14). Success can lead to self-reliance, so remembering requires deliberate effort.

6. Remember your dependence on God

The wilderness experience was meant to teach that life depends on God rather than merely on material resources (Deuteronomy 8:2–3). Remembering fosters humility.

7. Remember both blessings and failures

Israel is told not only to remember God’s faithfulness but also their own rebellion and shortcomings (Deuteronomy 9:7). Honest memory encourages repentance and guards against pride.

8. Remember through worship and communal practices

Festivals, sacrifices, covenant renewals, and public readings of the law function as collective acts of remembrance (Deuteronomy 16:31). Memory is strengthened within a community, not merely as an individual exercise.²

In Deuteronomy, remembering is not merely mental recall; it is an active practice that shapes character, faithfulness, and covenant living.

In Deuteronomy, remembering is not merely mental recall; it is an active practice that shapes character, faithfulness, and covenant living.

Only God can deliver us

Some of you may know of the work of Pastor John of ‘Strengthen the Faithful’.¹  

In his words: “Many pulpits are silent on the need for this Nation to turn back to obeying Almighty God. It is the Christian God of the Bible who delivered this Nation from invasion during the Second World War; it wasn’t Allah, Buddha, Atheism or Hinduism.

And only Almighty God can deliver us from the existential danger which our Nation will face in the not-too-distant future.

And only Almighty God can deliver us from the existential danger which our Nation will face in the not-too-distant future. Since many church leaders are failing to declare this truth, it is now vital for Christians at the grassroots to sound the alarm instead. Only if this truth is widely shared will people know that they can turn to Almighty God for deliverance, as did the Wartime generation.” 

God has the power to deliver this nation again, as He has in the past. Across the length and breadth of Britain, in our families, our churches, and prayer groups, this is the moment for the people to turn back to God in humility and repentance, just as the wartime generation did.

Notes
1. Pastor John’s resources are available here: https://www.strengthenthefaithful.co.uk
2. While the core content of this article is entirely my own, AI was used to help put together the series of eight principles about remembering.