July 4, 2012

Can I be real with you today?  I'm feeling a bit anti-celebratory on this festive day.  I've been thinking about the state our country is in and the similarities we have to the state it was in 236 years ago.  I'm pretty certain that although on paper some men declared freedom, it wasn't all that celebratory.  Let's face it, we were in the middle of a war.  And if we are being real, there were people living on American soil who weren't intended recipients of the freedom that was declared.  I do have to give these founding fathers some credit... I believe they were honestly trying to establish something bigger than themselves.  From their perspective of the world, they wrote a decree, a demand, an establishment of our independence.

This one is for my fellow scarcastic friends out there! Source

I've been avoiding the obligatory, "God Bless America/Proud to be an American" Facebook status, because I don't really feel this way right now.  I'm genuinely grateful to live in this country.  I am learning to accept its faults and claim them as my own.  But I believe that God is bigger than just blessing America.  America was never established as an ambassador of God's kingdom.  It was established as a place where no one could inhibit your freedom to practice your religion or lack thereof.  Christians, on the other hand, you are called to be ambassadors of God's kingdom.

{Begin soapbox rant here:} If you believe the government shouldn't allow unborn babies to be killed because it is wrong, tell them so! Don't tell them it is wrong because we used to be a country established on the Bible.  And don't tie this issue to whether or not you think affordable healthcare is socialism!  Politics is not the way to move forward the kingdom of God! {End soapbox rant}

I'm not an economist, a politician nor an historian, but I feel pretty safe to say that we are not too far from where we were 236 years ago.  We still have a lot to learn about war and freedom.  And we still have leaders who are trying to do something bigger than themselves.

Here's my new Facebook status: Happy 236th Birthday America! May you [and the rest of the world] experience the undeserved blessings of God!