"America! America! God shed his grace on thee"

Here we are on Independence Day. We hear fireworks at night, everyone wears red, white, and blue, and feelings and excitement run high.

To me, Independence Day means much more than the celebrations. (We're not even doing fireworks--we only have sparklers, which we inherited from someone who was moving.) I have been reflecting on the blessings that God has shed on our great nation. These reflections have been all the more powerful since this year, July 4th landed on a Sunday.

In church the past couple of weeks, we've sung the patriotic songs--"America the Beautiful," "My Country, 'Tis of Thee," and "The Star-Spangled Banner." Each of these songs is, in part, a prayer to God.

America the Beautiful: (in all four verses)

"...America! America!
God shed his grace on thee..."

"...America! America!
God mend thine ev'ry flaw..."

"...America! America!
May God thy gold refine,
Till all success be nobleness,
And ev'ry gain divine."

"...America! America!
God shed his grace on thee..."

My Country, 'Tis of Thee: (4th verse)

"Our fathers' God, to thee,
Author of liberty,
To thee we sing;
Long may our land be bright
With freedom's holy light.
Protect us by thy might,
Great God, our King!"

The Star-Spangled Banner: (3rd verse)

"...Blest with vict'ry and peace, may the heav'n rescued land
Praise the Pow'r that hath made and preserved us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: 'In God is our trust!'..."


These are but excerpts from three songs. Our nation's history is shadowed by the Almighty's hand. Think of the bickering colonies with untrained militias who were able to somehow defeat England's well-trained army. Remember how a government, of a type that had never been seen before, somehow emerged from a convention, and then was ratified by the still-divided states? There are countless examples of God's hand in our nation's history.

Some people seem to think that we can honor our Founders, those who lost their lives for our freedom, but still think of their religious ideas as being nonsense or old-fashioned. My friends, I believe that this is a mistake.

Do you think that if we forget God that He will still protect us? Do you think that if we worship the false gods of materialism, of political correctness, of selfishness, that He will still guide us and lead us? That does not fit with His ways that we read about in the Bible--in neither the Old nor the New Testament. No, I have come to the conclusion that if our country rejects God and His ways, that we also reject His protection and guidance.

Friends, there is still time. God blesses the people who consent to be His. If we follow Him, we can return to favor. Let us turn to God and do things His way, rather than allowing secularism to reign. We can again pray to God for the good of our country. We can be more open to our friends, families, and associates about our religious beliefs. We can be more responsible and follow God's commandments.

There is still time.