I Lift My Lamp Beside the Golden Door

Our land of liberty will be 240 years old tomorrow. I want to give our Founding Fathers some tribute, because without them, we would probably be singing "God Save the Queen."

As I look at America during these dark times, it is difficult to find any light. At a time when every type of evil act is being committed around us and the odds in the Presidential election feeling quite out of favor, we begin to question if this country will ever light its lamp again. There's a slight tear in the stars and stripes, a tarnish in the crown of Miss Liberty, and there's still a crack in that bell, but we are still America, land that we love, and God still steadies our country in motion.

On this 4th, let us not just celebrate who we are. But let's celebrate who we were, who we are, and who we will remain and become. There is something very remarkable about the colors that are flown from our house fronts and describe who we are as individuals and as a nation. What do these stars of white and stripes of red represent and mean to you or me? From our borders, to our fifty states, the soil of our nation has been enriched by the hands of the huddled masses of every tribe and nation.

Our freedoms are often forgotten by our inability to understand what is required of our leaders and men and women in uniform to keep them protected. Consider the innumerable men and women who have laid down their lives for the protection of our freedom. How well do we appreciate them and their sacrifices? I see a field of crosses inscribed with the names who left their hearts in our soil and I see the many men who raised our flag of pride on that foreign shore 71 years ago.

There is a thankfulness to carry red, white, and blue in my heart, to know that the Lord has lead this country through war, tribulation, and trouble, and to stand before Lincoln in all his magnificence and understand the truth "and that government of the people, for the people, and by the people, shall not perish from this earth."

Through our fields of glory, the rush of waves in the Atlantic, the Rockies of the Midwest, the geyser of Yellowstone, the faces of Rushmore, the Blue Ridges of Carolina, and the Canyon of Arizona, our land is truly the Beautiful to be thankful for and admired. What a simple joy to hear a penny clink, and read "In God we trust."

On this birthday I look back and ahead and see the many ways the Lord has been our guide, and know that we mustn't lead on with fear or panic in our hearts of what tomorrow holds. Through the clash of swords and blasts of arms, He has been the quiet and peace during and after the storm. He has truly shed His grace on thee.

We Americans have so much to be thankful for. Let's not forget who we are and what we have been blessed to carry in our hearts and fly from our front porches. Let's not forget the many men who brought us liberty and justice for all. Let's not forget our nation under God. Let's not forget what the cost of freedom requires of us.  Let's remember to establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty. Let's wear our stars of white and stripes of red without fear or bitterness and keep our trust in Christ for a better tomorrow.

Happy birthday, America! God bless this land!


"Lead on, O King eternal,till sin's fierce war shall cease,
and holiness shall whisper
the sweet amen of peace.
For not with swords' loud clashing
or roll of stirring drums
with deeds of love and mercy
the heavenly kingdom comes.

Let Your kingdom come and Your will be done,
Right here on earth, as it is in heaven.

Lead on, O King eternal;
we follow, not with fears,
for gladness breaks like morning
where'er your face appears.
Your cross is lifted o'er us,
we journey in its light;
the crown awaits the conquest;
lead on, O God of might."