As a U.S. Army veteran, I look at Independence Day with tears at times, but always with a grateful heart. I was just thinking about the multitude of blessings this country has received over the past 250 years. I think we also tend to forget how that independence was achieved.
A Glimpse of the Exodus
While modern-day know-it-alls say there never was a time when former slaves departed from 400 years of bondage in Egypt, I still believe with all my being that the Bible is God’s Word and therefore accurate.
In the same way, modern-day historians paint a different picture of the exodus from Europe undertaken by America’s forefathers. Pharaoh’s army pursued Moses and Israel after they departed Egypt. The British armies pursued those who left, chasing them not across the Red Sea but across the Atlantic Ocean. Our ancestors wanted to live free, and they fought for the liberty that we celebrate this coming weekend. As He blessed the Israelites seeking the Promised Land, God has blessed America these many years, and as a result, you and I live in the Land of the Free.
Grateful for Forefathers Who Called on God
As I have mentioned, scoffers scoff again. Many scoff when believers speak of the faith of our fathers in gaining independence. However, history reveals that faith in the God of Heaven was essential to the birth of this nation.
Our founding fathers met, discussed, and debated the future of this nation, but above all, they prayed. They believed deeply that Christianity was the foundation on which the nation would survive and thrive. Years later, that belief was evident in an 1853 U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee report defending the appointment of Christian congressional chaplains: “We are a Christian people… not because the law demands it, not to gain exclusive benefits or to avoid legal disabilities, but from choice and education; and in a land thus universally Christian, what is to be expected, what desired, but that we shall pay due regard to Christianity.”
Proud to be an American
May we never forget the cost of our liberty. It was paid for in the same way our liberty from sin was attained. Our freedom from the bondage of sin was paid for with the blood of our Lord. Our national freedom was paid for with the shed blood of men and women who fought not only in the Revolutionary War but also in subsequent wars.
As the cross is the symbol of our Christian liberty, the flag of the United States of America is our symbol of national liberty. I am proud to be an American. I have visited six foreign countries, and I always come home grateful to live in the USA. We are not a perfect nation, but thank God we are a free nation!
Little Phrases with Huge Impact
In 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed legislation that many rarely think about. That legislation added “under God” to our Pledge of Allegiance, which is why we pledge allegiance to “one nation, under God” today. Two years later, Eisenhower signed legislation making “In God We Trust” the national motto of the United States. Those are small phrases, but they have a huge impact. Whether scoffers want to admit it or not, the United States is a nation that has called upon God, and God has blessed America greatly!
The Land that I Love
I make no apology for being a Christian, and I make no apology for loving America. I hope each of you has a great celebration of America’s 250th birthday. Please remember these lyrics: “God bless America / Land that I love / Stand beside her and guide her / Thru the night with a light from above. / From the mountains to the prairies / To the oceans white with foam / God bless America, My home sweet home.”
