4th of July

232 years ago 13 colonies declared their independence from England, not an end in itself, but a step in a process that led to the formation of the United States of America. By most standards it was a revolution that should have never happened. The colonies were thriving. Many of the colonists were doing quite well. While they were certainly under British rule they were not oppressed as we might think of oppression. Never the less it did happen and through Divine guidance as well as the courage and wisdom of an exceptional group of people eventually the country that we know today took shape. Our republic has weathered a civil war, social upheaval, corruption at its highest levels, disputed elections, Jimmy Carter, assassinations, Richard Nixon, economic collapse and 2 world wars to provide us with what history will record as perhaps the best human government man could offer; man's last best chance.

Today our nation faces difficult times. We are in a financial crisis of our own making. The price of energy threatens industries, families and the American way of life we are used to. We are embroiled in two wars that seem to have no immediate end in sight and face the possibility of an additional conflict over Iran. Corruption among our public officials at all levels seems to be increasing and we continue to slip into a moral abysss. Yet through all of this we still have a historically unprecidented combination of freedom combined with the rule of law. In November of this year a new president will be elected to replace a historically unpopular (at least for now) one. There will be a peaceful and orderly transition of power in January. The republic will continue.

History tells us though that all human governments eventually collapse under the weight of corruption, excess and complacency. Although we can't know when, our government will eventually go the way of all others. It is inevitable. We can see certain warning signs. Domestically, traditional American values are being diluted by those coming to our nation who are demanding we become them instead of them becoming us, watering down what has made us a different people from Europe or the banana republics of the world. Students seem to have less knowledge of our history. People and the courts seem to be willing to disregard rights in the name of public safety and political correctness (the recent 2ND amendment ruling not withstanding). Increasingly certain elements within us seem to want to apologize for our existence.

While all of man's governments will at some point end and be replaced by a coming Kingdom of God it saddens me to see what may be a terminal decline in our own country, a country that has far more often been a force for good than bad, for the world.