Stars, Stripes, and Hope

We, as a country, celebrate Independence Day this weekend.  The barbecues are getting ready, parades planned, patriotic music cued and families making plans.  It is a time to celebrate our great country, The United State of America.

Looking deeper into the masses of people in our country, we seem to be anything but united, don’t we?  Facebook is burgeoning with posts complaining, whining, making fun of and desperately trying to get their point across that this or that political party was or is ruining our country.  To tell you the truth, I pass over every single one of them, no matter what point of view there is.

In these posts, I hear hatred, distaste, cussing and am saddened by the negativity I see people live in and are obsessed with.  In my belief, if I can’t do anything about things and situations on a practical level, my response is to pray that the Lord will do what He needs to do.  We were a God-fearing country, but it is a new day.  Not everyone needs to believe what I believe and that does not give me the right to slander them, call them idiots or any other names. Look at the example we are leaving the next generation.  It is good to have good discretion, but it is not in God’s design to put others down or call them names. Take the high road, parents.

My next question is, “How would the Lord Jesus treat these people?”  Certainly not like what I see on Facebook.  “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”  Eph. 5:1,2

The blessing in all of this is that Jesus is the Hope of the world; not republicans or democrats.  Jesus has all the answers in His design and nothing is getting past Him.  The Bible says things will get worse in the end times, right?  Well, here we are.

During this 4th of July weekend, please take the time to thank the Lord for the freedoms we enjoy in the US.  Don’t look at what we don’t have just for one weekend.  Be grateful and celebrate for what we do have.  Looking at other countries in the world, it could be a lot worse, right?

So, fly the flag high,

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grab a hot dog and let’s sing.  “God bless America….Land that I love…Stand beside her and guide her through the night with a light from above…From the mountains, to the prairies,to the oceans white with foam…God bless America; my home sweet home.