Teacher and students reciting the Pledge of Allegiance
As I look back at my life over the years in the greatest nation on earth, I find it shocking how far we've come in ways that I can't call positive. Oh, yes, we've had some great inventions, a lifestyle better than most in the world and a large number of citizens who have been willing to give their all for their family and their nation, but we've also seen the rise of tumult and turmoil unlike any previously ever seen in this land. Now I know there have been challenges to the American way of life before, some in my own lifetime. I remember the chaos of the late '60's both from the civil rights struggle and the opposition to the war in Vietnam, but I've never seen large groups totally seeking destruction to the degree we find today which offer nothing but Marxist propaganda as their justification. And how have we gotten this way, particularly with so many young people who have lived privileged lives, yet today want to complete turn their and our lives upside down on behalf of division and destruction across the American plain? It is a long story, one that has been building for several generations, and the very thing we need to do to get it under control we find so many turning away from, God Himself.
If we look at a few key features and moments related to the founding and early days of the nation, it is clear that God played a very big part in the process. Look at the founding document, The Declaration of Independence, and the mention of Nature's God and the Creator are clear references to our Almighty. This document was, in effect, the defining vision that would ultimately guide the thinking in the writing of the Constitution and when read in conjunction with that document, any clear thinking person quickly understands the connection. And then there are the actions and words of George Washington, both as a field general leading troops against the world's strongest military force and as the nation's first President, when he both knelt in prayer at Valley Forge acting for God's deliverance in the upcoming crossing of the Delaware and in his two messages establishing a Day of Thanksgiving in both 1789 and 1796. References to God are emblazoned on our buildings and even currency, yet somehow today those who would like to eliminate God refuse to acknowledge real history, just as they try to destroy remnants of it in their desire to transform our nation into a non-existent Nirvana which is, of course, nothing more than tyranny.
The beginnings of the major push to change America goes back to early in the twentieth century with the birth of Progressivism. It has slowly advanced its cause by infiltrating much of our societal organizational entities, and in the case of our justice system and our educational institutions, it has had a dramatic impact in gaining traction. Look at the long list of liberal judges who have tried to put social constructs beyond the law into judgments in recent generations. And, of course, in the case of schools, it has been even more dramatic. One of the key reasons why schools have been so impacted goes back to the decision to disallow prayer in schools. Most older Americans remember reciting the Pledge of Allegiance which was usually followed by a short prayer. These things, of course, are now gone and with it have been other social factors which have reduced the reliance on God in daily life. None has been more dramatic than the decline in the traditional family element, consisting of a man and a woman, with joint responsibility for raising children. Several things converged to change this. First, with Congress approving the Great Society, the importance of having the man in the household lost favor. This was aided by our cultural shift away from marital fidelity which birth control on demand also furthered. Welfare money was also now available to make dependence on a working father less critical and the result was a huge increase in children out of wedlock. Add to this the loss of the influence of the Golden Rule concept which had basically come from the Ten Commandments and less reliance on the church and God certainly was critical to that.
So, now we have a situation where we no longer follow God's laws, younger generations have no knowledge of our past, and society has now has even accepted the idea that the laws of nature no longer apply to biology, that somehow psychological social theory trumps nature. Even the courts have accepted this and, in the meantime, we have seen as a result with ever increasing actions of a society that no longer has any absolutes. Hence slogans like Black Lives Matter draw mixed reviews since we don't know how one group can matter while another group of the human race doesn't, or at least that's how the arguments get going. And, of course, police don't matter, and so we see calls coming, and in some cases approved, to defund the police as violence grows and death of innocent people result. They want a nation with no borders, speech that isn't free and religion replaced by their madness. And, yet, people don't know what to do and even most of our elected leaders, those who are sworn to uphold the Constitution, just sit silently, hoping to protect their turf first, with the concerns of the people a different, and secondary, concern.
So, America needs a return to God's grace if we want to turn things around and I am sure that God looks at our society with disdain as he sees the scorn that is thrown His way. And with this in mind, on September 26, 2020, The Return: a National Day of Prayer and Renewal will be held on the National Mall in Washington, DC. Hosted by a number of great leaders of faith, including Messianic Jew Jonathan Cahn, a dynamic speaker, it will also include other fine people of faith including Kevin Sarbo and his wife, Pat Boone, Mike Lindell, Michele Bachmann, Dr. James Dobson, Bishop Harry Jackson, Alveda King and many more. The day will be part of a ten day period for Americans and people from all over the world to pray for a return to God and sanity in how we live our lives. And it's not necessary to go to Washington, for a simulcast will be available for watching at home, with local groups gathering together in churches and other places throughout the land. I think it is a grand effort and it is way past due. And if you want to be a part in whatever capacity, go to their site: www.thereturn.org and check it out. And if you are troubled and concerned, yet are unsure of what you can do, what do you have to lose? I hope you'll join me there. We've got to get busy, folks, for God is losing patience with us. If you think that we need not worry, that God will not forsake us, never forget that God is gracious, but he is also God and He wants us to put on other gods before Him. I think that is the problem that we find ourselves enmeshed in today.
If we look at a few key features and moments related to the founding and early days of the nation, it is clear that God played a very big part in the process. Look at the founding document, The Declaration of Independence, and the mention of Nature's God and the Creator are clear references to our Almighty. This document was, in effect, the defining vision that would ultimately guide the thinking in the writing of the Constitution and when read in conjunction with that document, any clear thinking person quickly understands the connection. And then there are the actions and words of George Washington, both as a field general leading troops against the world's strongest military force and as the nation's first President, when he both knelt in prayer at Valley Forge acting for God's deliverance in the upcoming crossing of the Delaware and in his two messages establishing a Day of Thanksgiving in both 1789 and 1796. References to God are emblazoned on our buildings and even currency, yet somehow today those who would like to eliminate God refuse to acknowledge real history, just as they try to destroy remnants of it in their desire to transform our nation into a non-existent Nirvana which is, of course, nothing more than tyranny.
The beginnings of the major push to change America goes back to early in the twentieth century with the birth of Progressivism. It has slowly advanced its cause by infiltrating much of our societal organizational entities, and in the case of our justice system and our educational institutions, it has had a dramatic impact in gaining traction. Look at the long list of liberal judges who have tried to put social constructs beyond the law into judgments in recent generations. And, of course, in the case of schools, it has been even more dramatic. One of the key reasons why schools have been so impacted goes back to the decision to disallow prayer in schools. Most older Americans remember reciting the Pledge of Allegiance which was usually followed by a short prayer. These things, of course, are now gone and with it have been other social factors which have reduced the reliance on God in daily life. None has been more dramatic than the decline in the traditional family element, consisting of a man and a woman, with joint responsibility for raising children. Several things converged to change this. First, with Congress approving the Great Society, the importance of having the man in the household lost favor. This was aided by our cultural shift away from marital fidelity which birth control on demand also furthered. Welfare money was also now available to make dependence on a working father less critical and the result was a huge increase in children out of wedlock. Add to this the loss of the influence of the Golden Rule concept which had basically come from the Ten Commandments and less reliance on the church and God certainly was critical to that.
So, now we have a situation where we no longer follow God's laws, younger generations have no knowledge of our past, and society has now has even accepted the idea that the laws of nature no longer apply to biology, that somehow psychological social theory trumps nature. Even the courts have accepted this and, in the meantime, we have seen as a result with ever increasing actions of a society that no longer has any absolutes. Hence slogans like Black Lives Matter draw mixed reviews since we don't know how one group can matter while another group of the human race doesn't, or at least that's how the arguments get going. And, of course, police don't matter, and so we see calls coming, and in some cases approved, to defund the police as violence grows and death of innocent people result. They want a nation with no borders, speech that isn't free and religion replaced by their madness. And, yet, people don't know what to do and even most of our elected leaders, those who are sworn to uphold the Constitution, just sit silently, hoping to protect their turf first, with the concerns of the people a different, and secondary, concern.
So, America needs a return to God's grace if we want to turn things around and I am sure that God looks at our society with disdain as he sees the scorn that is thrown His way. And with this in mind, on September 26, 2020, The Return: a National Day of Prayer and Renewal will be held on the National Mall in Washington, DC. Hosted by a number of great leaders of faith, including Messianic Jew Jonathan Cahn, a dynamic speaker, it will also include other fine people of faith including Kevin Sarbo and his wife, Pat Boone, Mike Lindell, Michele Bachmann, Dr. James Dobson, Bishop Harry Jackson, Alveda King and many more. The day will be part of a ten day period for Americans and people from all over the world to pray for a return to God and sanity in how we live our lives. And it's not necessary to go to Washington, for a simulcast will be available for watching at home, with local groups gathering together in churches and other places throughout the land. I think it is a grand effort and it is way past due. And if you want to be a part in whatever capacity, go to their site: www.thereturn.org and check it out. And if you are troubled and concerned, yet are unsure of what you can do, what do you have to lose? I hope you'll join me there. We've got to get busy, folks, for God is losing patience with us. If you think that we need not worry, that God will not forsake us, never forget that God is gracious, but he is also God and He wants us to put on other gods before Him. I think that is the problem that we find ourselves enmeshed in today.
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