Making America Great Again

I am not primarily a political writer, and politics is not my first love. However, I love the idea of the United States of America, what it was originally meant to be, and the way God has not only blessed this country, but the world, in many many ways, through this country (despite what the "America-haters" would have us believe). And I, like many other people, are very concerned about what looks like the steady decline of this (once?) great nation.

If America is to become great again, doesn't it make sense to take a moment to consider what made it great in the first place? A whole book could easily be written on this subject alone -- but for the purposes of this relatively short blog post, some shorthand is in order, so I won't mince words.

I firmly believe that, first of all, America became great because the men and women who were most instrumental in founding this nation sought God, served Him, and attempted to acknowledge Him in all their ways, including every aspect of the founding of this nation. Some will balk at this statement, both because it is not politically correct to suggest such a thing, and because (since it has not been taught in schools for decades) many people have no idea that this is actually true, but it is simply a fact. I will plan on attaching some references and resources later so that those of you who are interested can do your own research on that subject.

The fact is, God is good, and He wants us to prosper, individually and nationally. This isn't just true for Americans, it is true for any people. But the fact is, to the best of my understanding there have only been two nations in history that have intentionally been founded on principles of serving the Creator of heaven and earth: ancient Israel, and the United States. If you read the history found in the Old Testament, it is found over and over and over that when Israel and her leaders served God and followed His ways, the nation prospered and the people enjoyed wealth and peace. When they turned away from God, they also turned away from the blessing He desired to give them, and they would lose their peace, wealth, and security, often to the point of being invaded and taken over by other nations. It makes sense when you think about it: whether as individuals or as a nation, if it is true (and I emphatically contend that it is!) that God really does want good things for us, it follows that He would guide us in ways that lead to good things -- health, peace, prosperity, fulfillment, etc. -- and that therefore following His ways would end up having that effect, whereas moving away from His ways would tend to have the contrary effect. In fact, it is a principle found in the Old Testament Law. He spoke to the nation of Israel, before they entered the Promised Land:

“If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully keep all his commands that I am giving you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the world. You will experience all these blessings if you obey the Lord your God: Your towns and your fields will be blessed.Your children and your crops will be blessed.The offspring of your herds and flocks will be blessed.Your fruit baskets and breadboards will be blessed.Wherever you go and whatever you do, you will be blessed.

“The Lord will conquer your enemies when they attack you. They will attack you from one direction, but they will scatter from you in seven!

“The Lord will guarantee a blessing on everything you do and will fill your storehouses with grain. The Lord your God will bless you in the land he is giving you.

“If you obey the commands of the Lord your God and walk in his ways, the Lord will establish you as his holy people as he swore he would do. Then all the nations of the world will see that you are a people claimed by the Lord, and they will stand in awe of you.

“The Lord will give you prosperity in the land he swore to your ancestors to give you, blessing you with many children, numerous livestock, and abundant crops. The Lord will send rain at the proper time from his rich treasury in the heavens and will bless all the work you do. You will lend to many nations, but you will never need to borrow from them. If you listen to these commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today, and if you carefully obey them, the Lord will make you the head and not the tail, and you will always be on top and never at the bottom. You must not turn away from any of the commands I am giving you today, nor follow after other gods and worship them."  --Deuteronomy 28:1-14, NLT

The following verses go on to warn that if the people reject God and His ways, instead of blessing they would find cursing in each of those same areas: no prosperity, no security, no peace. History has borne out the accuracy of this promise and warning for the nation of Israel. It has also been borne out, so far, in the history of the United States: we started out serving Him, and honoring His ways, and this country became more blessed than any that has ever been seen on earth. May I remind us of the motto of this country? "In God We Trust". Remember? But these last few decades have seen us as a nation increasingly turn from God, pushing Him from all aspects of our life, including our governments. And now what? God doesn't need to punish us; we will find our own punishment if we step out of the stream of His ways, and therefore out of the stream of His blessing.

We stand at a crossroads in our country right now. The nation of Israel was at a crossroads when Jesus came to earth. They had a choice: they could humble themselves, recognize the amazing opportunity God was giving them in their midst, and choose Him and life; or they could cling to their old corrupt ways of self importance, self righteousness,  and control, being rich in their own eyes and satisfied with building themselves up at the expense of others. In the end, they clung to their own ways, turning in hatred against Jesus, demanding for Him to be crucified while they shouted for Barabbas, a self-important murderer, instead. Jerusalem was utterly destroyed within 40 years, and it took 1900 years for the Jewish people to make their way back.

Tonight we had the final presidential debate before the primaries. I have been watching over the months as angry people have been shouting for self-important people, one who could be charged with murder (among other things), and another who says he could commit murder on the streets and he wouldn't lose a single supporter. On the other hand, there are also at least two people who take God and His ways seriously.

Who we choose to lead us this year is vitally important. It will likely have an extreme and lasting impact on what not only our lives look like in the years to come but likely even more so our children's and grand-children's lives. But the biggest issue is in our own hearts. Are we ourselves willing to turn our hearts to God, and follow His ways? Are we willing to stand up for what is true and right, even if that means some discomfort for ourselves? Are you willing to take a minute from your busy day and say Yes to God, Yes to righteousness for our country? "The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing." Yes, that means, in part, to vote. It means to pray regularly for those in authority (1 Tim.2:1-2). And it means that we lay down mediocrity in our own lives, and learn to be in anticipation of something far greater and better as we learn to believe and follow God and His ways in the great adventure He has for us.

By the way, if you want a hint on how to find the person best suited to help to lead this country back to greatness, in the spirit our founders walked in that brought about such great peace and prosperity: look to people who don't just babble religious platitudes, but 1) have a history of honoring God and people in their lives, and 2) look to the Constitution, for it is the document that came out of prolonged times of seeking God for how to best lead the nation and limit government so that government would serve the people, rather than people the government, and afford people the freedom to live and serve God as they saw fit.

The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/e/edmundburk377528.html

May God bless you, and may He grant us eyes to see and hearts to respond to His ways, and keep us from the slippery slope of choosing our own ways over His.