From sea to shining sea, God has poured out His blessings on America. Waves crash white droplets against the bluffs and cliffs of the Pacific Coastline. Redwood forests rise and fall on a journey to the sea while soft white sand dunes create a pristine carpet hugging the Oregon coast.
Warm waters squish between wiggling toes along the Atlantic seaboard. Sparkling white sand beaches dance with lush marshlands and flow between sandy barge islands as the Atlantic Ocean winds southward.
See God's gracious, artistic hand carving the Grand Canyon, creating molten sulfur pots amidst the meadowlands of Yellowstone, forming glaciers and lakes and wildflowers across the northern most reaches of the USA where it brushes against Canada. Rolling plains and wheat fields, thundering waterfalls pounding the floor of Yosemite and Niagara Falls arching powerfully between the USA and Canada.
I could continue the list of natural beauty God has endowed on our country. But the greatest gift of all that He has given us is Freedom. He guided our Founding Fathers to draft a legal document saying that our Creator has given each person the right to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of happiness.
Yet the price of Freedom often requires the sacrifice of lives. To protect our Freedom, to keep our country Safe, to push the threat of Evil Away, lives have been given willing by men and women serving in our armed services.
This day we salute you, we honor you, we remember those who have gone before, we thank you for our lives.
May God Bless America with a return to the morals and principles of the truth upon which she was founded.
"What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him?...
"Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them slip from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them." Deuteronomy 4:7 & 9 NIV
Thanking God for the blessings in our country:
601) the freedom to worship our God
602) the opportunity to help others in need like our brothers and sisters in Joplin
603) the freedom to vote and elect our leaders
604) the freedom to move from one town or one state to another without scrutiny
605) the right to a trial by jurors of our peers, even though the process may be flawed or skewed by a representative's selfish motives
606) the privilege to educate our children either through homeschooling, a Christian school, or a publically funded facility
607) the opportunity to own property or a home
608) the protection of uniformed officers and firefighters who serve to keep us safe
609) God's majestic creation to explore freely
610) the freedom for those who choose to serve our country to be able to do so on a voluntary basis
May you discover a myriad of wondrous reasons to praise God for our country and those who serve us.
From My Heart to Yours,
Linking with the Gratitude Community at Ann Voskamp's Multitude Monday
Labels: Christian Inspiration, Creation, Gratitude Community, Holidays, Patriotism
