Independence Day

let freedom ring

Okay, so I know I just posted a vacation blog yesterday, but being the patriotic American that I am, I can't just let the 4th of July pass on by without acknowledging it in my blog. And since my post yesterday was so long, I just want to share a simple story that took place on our trip that I have been saving for today.

On the night we went to see the Pine Mountain Band perform, a segment of their show was dedicated to the military men and women who have served our country and those who are currently serving. They asked them to stand, and of course we acknowledged them with applause, hugs, and handshakes. Then the band played Trace Adkins' song Arlington (if you've never heard it, you should give it a listen) and we stood to sing the Star-Spangled Banner.

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of a young man, probably not much older than me, that had been standing earlier. His face was shining with tears. There was an older man, towards the back, and his head was bent forward. I watched his shoulders shaking as he sobbed. A woman next to me, also one of the many servicemen and women acknowledged earlier, grabbed her husband's hand and squeezed her eyes shut. Voices trembled as everyone sang through their tears.

And I cried.

I mean, really cried.

Most people my age would find this strange. Or hilarious. Or a combination of both. I'm sure some people would have even laughed at me. But I wasn't ashamed that I was crying at all. Because I know the history of this country very well. And I was brought up to understand the sacrifices that were made to get us where we are today.

I realized, as we were singing along to the Star-Spangled Banner, as I watched the people around me cry, what the problem with our country is today. There aren't enough people who put a hand over their heart when the National Anthem is played. There aren't enough people who cry when they hear the taps being played. There aren't enough people who know or truly understand the history of this great country. And there are too many people who think God should be omitted from the Pledge of Allegiance, our schools, our money, our government buildings.

There is nothing more intricately woven in the history of our country than God. I feel like most people have forgotten that. You can't deny that our country was founded on God and Biblical principles. It's everywhere. The Declaration. The Constitution. The Pledge of Allegiance. The Star-Spangled Banner. Diaries and letters written by our Founding Fathers. Political speeches from the early days. Our country's currency. And today I believe that we are far, far, far away from the America that our Founding Fathers envisioned.

I could go on forever, but instead I think I will end with several quotes, one from the Bible and two from one of our Founding Fathers. And I will continue to pray that we as Americans always remember our country's history and the sacrifices that have been made to make our country great.

“It is impossible to rightly govern a nation without God and the Bible."

"I am sure that never was a people, who had more reason to acknowledge a Divine interposition in their affairs, than those of the United States; and I should be pained to believe that they have forgotten that agency, which was so often manifested during our Revolution, or that they failed to consider the omnipotence of that God who is alone able to protect them.” 

-George Washington

 “A nation without God's guidance is a nation without order. Happy are those who keep God's law!”

-Proverbs 29:18

from Jess, with love<3
always