Freedom is not free.

I love history--I think John C. Stevens at ACU is to blame for my love. What a wonderful teacher of the things that matter about our country!

Jesus said to "Render to Caesar the things which are Caesar's." What shall we render to our country? I think loyalty,gratitude and respect are in order. There is no other country in the world where people yearn to go as they yearn to come to America. There is no other country in the world which gives so generously to others who need help.

I remember learning about the debate over the Marshall Plan after WWII--shall we help those who fought us rebuild? We did and built a European Union. While we may lag a bit at times today, we are still helping other countries survive.

Is America a Christian nation? No, I believe America is a nation full of Christians ready to pour that cup of cold water all over the world. I think the attempt to identify nations religiously misses the whole point-- that while we individually love our country, we are also trying constantly to "render what is due to God." It is fortuitous when the two renderings can come together.

It is my belief that the song America the Beautiful comes close to being a hymn about our country. We should everyday ask God to shed His grace on us and to crown our good with brotherhood from sea to shining sea. Let's drop all this drivel about immigration and welcome those yearning to come here as our forefathers and foremothers were welcomed. That is brotherhood. It is also brotherhood to help those immigrants who need help learning the language, rather than denigrate them because they don't know it. It is brotherhood to welcome them into our churches as we welcome all those who look like us--what a travesty when some are turned away because they do not talk like us or look like us. It is my belief that one of the lectures we will get in heaven is about unity and the things we have done to prevent it.

So, God bless the U. S. A. and thank you for the land in which I was born.