From the Sermon Archives for the Week of Proper 9: Power and Authority That Make a Difference

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Sermon originally preached on Sunday, July 7, 2013. As always it will be helpful for you to read the assigned texts below by clicking on or tapping their respective links. The matter of God’s power, God’s ability to specifically heal and make himself generally known to us is critically important for our faith. After all, who wants to give ultimate loyalty to an absentee God, if indeed that is what God is (helpful hint: he’s not). For those with ears to hear, listen and understand.

Lectionary texts: 2 Kings 5.1-14; Psalm 30; Galatians 6.1-16; St. Luke 10.1-11, 16-20.

In the name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen. 

In our texts this morning we are given glimpses about what it is like to live (and not live) under God’s power and authority, and I want us to look at what those glimpses can teach us as Christians who strive to live under the authority of the Lord Jesus and in the power of the Spirit. I want to do this by using our OT/gospel lessons as case studies and then drawing on what St. St. Paul and the psalmist have to say.

As we look at whose power and authority are being utilized in our OT lesson, we have a study of contrasts as evidenced by the behavior of the various characters involved. On the one hand we see Naaman, the Syrian commander, who has all the trappings of success by worldly standards and who is the epitome of worldly power, walking away in a rage after being told by Elisha to go dip himself in the Jordan River seven times so that Naaman’s leprosy will be healed. How dare this upstart little prophet refuse to heal him in some spectacular fashion! What an insult to a man of Naaman’s power and authority! Doesn’t Elisha know that Naaman has the power to crush him like a bug? What is Elisha thinking? Welcome to the world of trying to live under your own power and authority. Sometimes things don’t go the way you want them to, no matter how powerful and important you are, because, well, we are only human and cannot control everything that goes on in our lives, much as we try. Naaman would eventually be healed, but on God’s terms, not his.

Likewise, we see Joram, the unnamed king of Israel, who demonstrates, at least in this instance, that he too does not know what it is like to live under God’s authority and power. He sees the Syrian king’s overtures to him as a pretext for war and because Joram’s armies don’t match up with Ben-Hadad’s (the Syrian king), Joram gets more than a little nervous. After all, when you are trying to live under your own power and authority, whether you are a king or a commoner, all that really matters is who has the biggest stick because it is every person for him/herself and in this instance it wasn’t Joram who carried the biggest stick. 

 We can relate to the anger seen here—and the underlying anxiety that often accompanies it—because we too know what it it is like to be faced with no-win situations or have our earnest and heartfelt prayers apparently go unanswered. When either happen, especially with unanswered prayer, we wonder where God is in it all and whether he really cares about us. This tempts us to want to take matters into our own hands, but like Joram discovered, we quickly find out how futile that strategy is because our own power and authority are vastly limited and overstated. As Jesus reminded his followers, who among us can add a single hour to our life by worry (St. Matthew 6.27ff)? But we sure do try!

On the other hand we see how both the unnamed slave girl who was taken captive by the Syrians and the prophet Elisha behave, and we quickly see a stark contrast because they demonstrate that they are living under a very different power and authority—God’s power and authority. We notice how unperturbed they are about the whole thing. The slave girl simply tells her mistress that there is a prophet in Samaria (Israel) who can cure Naaman of his leprosy. No big deal. Just go do it. We notice the same peace about Elisha. Unlike his king, Elisha doesn’t get all hot and bothered by Naaman’s visit or the potentially volatile geopolitical ramifications involved. In fact, Elisha doesn’t even bother to meet this Syrian big shot face-to-face! He simply tells Naaman via a messenger to go, um, dip himself in the Jordan River seven times. 

So what’s the difference? Why did Naaman and Joram get all whacked out over the chain of events as they unfolded while Elisha and the slave girl who suggested that Naaman visit “a prophet in Samaria” did not? The answer, of course, is that the latter two lived under the power and authority of God. They knew the living God, the God of Israel, and they knew God’s track record. In Elisha’s case, he had seen God act through his mentor Elijah and had witnessed many acts of power. There was no doubt in their mind that God is a God who is actively involved in his good but fallen world and who has the power and willingness to work for the good of his people. Do you believe this about God? 

It is important for us to note that this faith in God’s power and authority did not make either Elisha or the slave girl immune from hurts and heartaches that are part and parcel of living in a fallen world. After all, the girl was a slave, captured as a result of warfare, and Elisha knew his fair share of problems as well (see, e.g., 2 Kings 6.24-32). But what was different about these two is that they both believed that God was greater than the evil that sometimes afflicted them and they acted accordingly because they really did know that in the end, the Good Guy wins and in the interim is actively involved for the benefit of his people.

We see this same dynamic of trust and faith in our gospel lesson this morning. There are several points of interest in this story that we could talk about, including the sense of urgency in which Jesus sent out the 70 disciples and the life and death stakes apparently involved in proclaiming God’s kingdom to people. But for our purposes, we note that Jesus told his disciples to expect both good and evil as they proclaimed the kingdom and above all to depend on God to provide for and protect them. After all, wolves eat lambs and if there is not a power greater than their own, it would be absolutely foolish for the 70 to embark on this missionary work. 

The disciples apparently were obedient to Jesus’ commands because St. Luke reports that when they returned they were overjoyed at their unexpected success. But it is important for us to note that they attributed their success to Jesus’ power and authority, not their own, and anyone who has acted on behalf of Jesus and under his authority will know exactly how they felt. Again, this is not to suggest that the disciples did not encounter difficulties and opposition. It is to suggest that they were able to tap into a power far greater than their own to protect them as they proclaimed the Good News of the coming of the kingdom in Jesus’ name. 

But Jesus did not want his newly enthused disciples to focus on power. Yes, he said, they (and we) have power and authority—his power and authority—to defeat the forces of creation arrayed against them (the snakes and scorpions and the forces they represent) as well as the very powers and principalities themselves that are opposed to Jesus and the coming of God’s kingdom. But what is even more important for the 70 and those of us who follow him is to know that God knows us and that nothing can ever really harm us (cf. Romans 8.31-39), i.e., their names (and ours) are written in God’s book of life contained in heaven. Persecution may come, suffering will surely come, and certainly death will come, whether by persecution or otherwise. But none of that matters when we give our life to Jesus and act in the power of the Spirit to proclaim that the kingdom of God is near. Doing so is evidence that we have a life-giving relationship with the Lord of this universe, or what the NT frequently refers to as “eternal life,” and of course that life is available to us right now because we are called to have a living relationship with God through Christ right now (cf. St. John 17.3).

All this points to the secret for living a relatively anxiety-free life as Christians, even as we live in an increasingly hostile culture. The extent to which we can put our trust in and live our life under Jesus’ power and authority rather than our own is the extent to which we will be able to enjoy the peace and confidence that Elisha, the slave girl, and Jesus’ returning disciples did, not to mention countless others across time and culture. As St. St. Paul reminds us in our epistle lesson, the reason for this peace is that we believe that in Jesus’ death and resurrection, God has both taken care of the intractable problem of human sin and the alienation and death it causes, and defeated the powers of evil decisively, although that victory has not yet been fully consummated. And as we see in our gospel lesson, when we act as if Jesus is Lord, he will use us to bring his healing love to his broken and hurting world and its people, and in doing so we have the power and authority to overcome even the forces of evil and their boss. That’s what Jesus was talking about when he reported seeing Satan fall from heaven like a flash of lightning. Think about that for a minute. Real forgiveness for our sins and power over evil and all that corrupts. This is power we cannot have on our own and it is literally a game-changer. This doesn’t mean things will automatically go swimmingly well for us or that we will not face great opposition or have to endure terrible suffering for Jesus’ sake. A quick look at St. St. Paul’s life will remind us otherwise. What it does mean is that we have the power of Jesus to help us overcome and transcend the world and the evil in it and that in doing so, we will enjoy God’s love and protection from all that can truly hurt us.

So what does that look like on the ground? Our lessons suggest that telling folks about Jesus and the kingdom is critically important for their sake as well as ours. But I want to focus on what St. St. Paul says to the Galatians, about how we treat each other as part of Jesus’ body, the Church, when the other sins and what kind of attitude we have toward others. If we truly love each other enough to confront each other when we see the other going down a dark path, if we truly love each other enough to bear one another’s burdens instead of devouring or destroying each other, this will catch people’s attention, usually in a good way, and we will be announcing that the kingdom has come. My point is that we can witness very powerfully to the world without ever saying a word (at least initially) by how we treat each other in the power of the Spirit. Every time we resist being haughty or refrain from backbiting and gossiping and other destructive forms of interpersonal behavior, we are sending a powerful message to the world and the dark powers behind them that Jesus is Lord and they are not. 

But the problem, of course, is that we aren’t built that way instinctively or emotionally to bear each others burdens. We are naturally proud and self-centered creatures. As the psalmist reminds us, when things are going well for us, we tend to become delusional and attribute our success to us and our abilities. Of course that is not the case and as the psalmist further reminds us, it often takes an awful turn of events in life to bring us back to reality. That is why humility is always the order of the day for anyone who calls themselves a Christian because like Naaman and Joram, we must learn and acknowledge that we do not have the power or authority to cope with all that is wrong in God’s world, including our own sin and brokenness. We must instead rely on the God of grace and life who calls into existence things that are not, who gives life to the dead, who heals and restores us, and who lives in and among us in the person of the Holy Spirit. When we do, of course, God gives us the power to develop the needed humility to change how we see ourselves and how we treat others who, like us, are made in God’s image and who are therefore worthy of our love and respect. In other words, God gives us the power to develop the needed humility to act in Jesus’ power and under his authority. 

Are you living that kind of Spirit-filled life and the peace that usually accompanies it? Are you helping others here to bear their burdens? Do you care enough about others that you are willing to confront them lovingly when you see them sin? Do you have the humility to allow others to do likewise to you? If you are enjoying these gifts, then give thanks to God for them and by all means keep using them! If you are not, ask the Lord of life to give you these gifts and the needed sweat equity to implement them, and then expect your prayers to be answered. After all, the kingdom is at stake and we are called to be builders of it for Jesus’ sake and the sake of the world!

In closing, here’s a quick test to help you determine whose power and authority you are living under. When things go south, at the end of the day do you say Jesus is Lord? I’m not talking about uttering a trite cliche. I’m talking about making a statement based on a real relationship with the living Lord and the firm knowledge that God has the ability and willingness to act on our behalf for the good of his world and coming kingdom. This knowledge isn’t wishful thinking but rather is based on God’s track record as revealed in Scripture, in your own life, and in the lives of God’s people. If you cannot say that Jesus is Lord when things look hopeless, it suggests that you have decided (knowingly or not) to limp through life on your own power and authority and without much hope. But if you can say Jesus is Lord and really mean it, you will surely know that you have Good News, now and for all eternity. 

In the name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

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George Washington’s Remarkable Prayer for America Still Resonates 250 Years Later (FN)

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It is the quintessential imagery of a desperate man, drained of all earthly strength and power, who’s come to the end of his own knowledge and wisdom. He takes a knee in humbleness to God.

This is the portrait of then-General George Washington at Valley Forge, praying for guidance when the fight for America’s independence seemed lost.  

The iconic painting, “Prayer at Valley Forge,” was created 50 years ago by artist Arnold Friberg in honor of America’s bicentennial. Now, it’s the centerpiece of the Museum of the Bible’s exhibit celebrating the nation’s 250th anniversary.

Carlos Campo, Ph.D., CEO of the Museum of the Bible, says, “Washington is most powerful on his knees. That’s what he knows, because he is bowing to a greater power who can infuse him with true leadership.”

The image is a snapshot of “a man carrying a burden that feels too heavy to bear — and the quiet place he goes when everything is on the line.” It takes place during the brutal winter of 1777-1778. 

America’s founders had already declared a break from Great Britain’s rule on July 4, 1776. 

Now, the “fragile army” of colonists needs to fight to secure it. Washington is their leader. But America at this juncture is more a dream than solid reality.  

Washington’s soldiers are freezing in the harsh snow and cold. Many of them are without shoes or warm clothing.

The painting and the D.C.-based museum show how fidelity to God and belief in the omniscient power of an Almighty God are real powers that helped create the United States of America. They are not lofty philosophies written in founding documents, but living realities tested on a literal battlefield.  

As America celebrates its 250th year, much of Washington, D.C., is turning red, white and blue to exalt this nation’s strength through its noble founding documents, the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights — all now taking center stage. Yet the greater influence, Campo believes, on America’s self-governing sense of law, justice and mercy is found at the Museum of the Bible, where the famous portrait of General Washington in prayer headlines the museum’s exhibit.

Campo told Fox News, “While other influences aided in the founding principles of our nation, nothing — and there’s not even a close second — had the influence as the power of scripture.”

Even so, Dr. Ben Carson wants us to know there was something in the man himself that was divinely ordained. He quips that it’s a story about a young Washington that public schools tend to leave out of their history lessons. 

Read it all.

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Independence Day 2026: July Fourth Blessings on America, with Lessons from the Red, White and Blue

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Today, as we celebrate our nation’s birth, perhaps no greater symbol more visibly displays the desire, and call, upon our citizens to patriotism than our American flag. 

In May 1776, it was not only their shared allegiance to their soon to be nation, but their shared faith that birthed our American flag. Two Episcopalians George Washington and Betsy Ross, who worshiped together at Christ Episcopal Church in Philadelphia, worked with a small and secret committee to design an enduring symbol for our new nation’s future.   

The end result was spelled out in the fabric of Old Glory – white stars on a blue background, with alternating stripes of red and white. The stars would grow in number as the states did… from the original 13 to the 50 there now. Blue, the symbol for vigilance, perseverance, justice and freedom. White for purity and innocence. And Red, hardiness, courage, valor and, of course, the price of blood so often paid for the freedom we now enjoy. 

American flag

God’s blessing of America, like many things God does, is a partnership arrangement.

For those who love our country and all for which it stands, when called to pledge our allegiance – we stand, we remove our hats, we silence our conversation. We place our hands over our hearts and we promise yet again our loyalty – as we should – to the essential intangible qualities of a free land entrusted to our care by God Almighty.

Regardless of the polarizing strains of identity politics that some promote, the vast majority of Americans still hold to the reality that we are “One Nation Under God,” and that, as our Declaration of Independence states, we are “…endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable Rights… among them, Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” 

Today, many of us will sing in celebration, Irving Berlin’s words, “God Bless America.” But for our time, it might as well be as much of a prayer as it is a patriotic hymn.

A minute or two with the headlines of any newspaper, or the first two minutes of any news channel, are enough to tell us that we need something beyond ourselves to help us. Whatever we are doing on our own, is doing little, if anything to stem the tide of cultural divisiveness, racial disharmony, pervasive political corruption and unceasing violence. We need something beyond ourselves – to help us, to save us – to bless us. 

While I offer these words as a Christian pastor, my work alongside religious leaders from all traditions, would agree – that God’s blessing of America, like many things God does, is a partnership arrangement. 

Yes, God’s blessings are always initiated with God Himself, but all the great stories of faith offer a deep truth – that much of what God does – is done not just “for” those made in God’s image, but “with” them – alongside them. Abraham, the Father of Hebrews, Christians and Muslims – was promised by God an inheritance, but in order to claim it, he would have to set himself on God’s path – trusting and believing, by faith, that holding God’s hand, he would ultimately receive that promise. 

What, today, might help us in that partnership with God? For your consideration — using the flag as a kind of background, let me offer a few suggestions as a 4th of July meditation of sort.

First, let the red in our flag recall for you the word, “Remember.” Remember the price paid for your freedom – from the Alamo to Gettysburg, from Anzio to Korea, Vietnam, the Persian Gulf, Afghanistan and Iraq. Remember, too, those who responded to terrorist attacks within our own borders. It is impossible to really take in the sacrifice of life, limb and loved ones for the cause of freedom, but it is not impossible to be eternally grateful.

Only weeks ago, my wife and I visited Omaha Beach in Normandy. As we walked off the beach, a young couple was laughing as they snapped photos with two of their toddlers – a scene not possible on the same beach that only 79 years before was soaked in the blood of allied soldiers who paved the way, not just for a free Europe, but a free world – and a scene that absolutely would never have been if the launch of D-Day had not turned the tide of that horrible war.   

Later, as we gazed upon the over 9,000 graves of Americans buried just above that same beach, no words fit what only the heart could feel – humility and gratitude. 

Around our globe, we see the birth pains of nations hoping and praying for what you and I have had for well over 200 years. Remember. Remember the price that has been paid. And remember a price that high is also a treasure impossible to value – except through the gift of grateful remembrance. So – remember.

From Fox News Opinion. A nice reflection and so very true. Read it all.

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Independence Day 2026: It’s Time to Ditch Today’s Dominant Values and Revisit the Spirit of 1776

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Independence Day should be more than fireworks and festivities—it should be a day of profound reflection and recognition. A day to honor the tremendous sacrifices and unyielding values of the Founding Fathers and American Patriots who defied death and tyranny, breaking free from the oppressive reign of a despotic king and the British Empire. These intrepid souls, fueled by an unwavering commitment to freedom, epitomized moral courage and selflessness. They challenged staggering odds, inspiring generations. However, a disconcerting chasm now gapes between the spirit of 1776 and today’s dominant values. 

Historical accounts tell us that during the American Revolution, less than 45 percent of colonists actively supported independence, according to historian Thomas Slaughter. This reminder underlines that the quest for freedom and justice seldom garners unanimous applause. Often, it’s the morally brave few who defy the status quo, facing mockery, rebuke, and even death. 

Sound familiar? 

Today, citizens face not a lethal external enemy but an insidious domestic one—”cancel culture.” This modern menace, capable of publicly ostracizing individuals, seems a harsher fate than that faced by our forefathers. 

Modern societal norms starkly contrast with the spirit of American independence. We see personal accountability crumble, a government increasingly dismissive of our Constitution and Bill of Rights, a weaponized justice system, and too much of a media landscape that has lost its objectivity. 

Minuteman statue with U.S. flag

The Lexington Minuteman Statue superimposed in American flag against blue sky. Lexington Battle Green, Massachusetts.   (Photo by H. Armstrong Roberts/ClassicStock/Getty Images)

This amalgamation is a formidable threat to the freedom, justice, and individual liberty our founding fathers fiercely fought for. We must not only acknowledge these challenges but also actively strive to re-instill the founding principles of our nation—personal responsibility, limited government, and the safeguarding of individual rights. The question is: are we willing to change course, regardless of discomfort or inconvenience, or will we let the sacrifices of our ancestors be in vain?

From Fox News. Agree with this opinion, especially with the last question above. Read it all.

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Independence Day 2026: Meet the American Who Wrote “The Battle Hymn of the Republic”

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Julia Ward Howe

Julia Ward Howe (1819-1910) gave the United States — and the world — some of the most inspirational words ever written. 

She penned “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” in November 1861, during a wartime tour of Washington, D.C., as Americans realized with gloom that the seven-month-old Civil War would be longer, darker and deadlier than anticipated. 

Howe’s masterpiece has been called America’s fight song. Its lyrics inspired the United States to spiritual resolve and sacrifice. 

The words tell the biblically heroic story of Union soldiers marching to their death in the name of Christ to vanquish slavery: 

As he died to make men holy
Let us die to make men free
His truth is marching on

From Fox News. Inspiring. Read it all.

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Independence Day 2026: The Full Text of America’s National Anthem

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Oh, say, can you see, by the dawn’s early light,
What so proudly we hail’d at the twilight’s last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, thro’ the perilous fight,
O’er the ramparts we watch’d, were so galantly streaming?
And the rockets’ red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof thro’ the night that our flag was still there.
O say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore dimly seen thro’ the mists of the deep,
Where the foe’s haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o’er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning’s first beam,
In full glory reflected, now shines on the stream:
‘Tis the star’spangled banner: O, long may it wave
O’ver the land of the free and the home of the brave!

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war and the battle’s confustion
A home and a country should leave us no more?
Their blood has wash’d out there foul footsteps’ pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave:
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

O, thus be it ever when freemen shall stand,
Between their lov’d homes and the war’s desolation;
Blest with vict’ry and peace, may the heav’n-rescued land
Praise the Pow’r that hath made and preserv’d us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause is just,
And this be our motto: “In God is our trust”
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

—Written by Francis Scott Key, 1814

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Independence Day 2026: George Washington’s First Inaugural Address of 1789

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Such being the impressions under which I have, in obedience to the public summons, repaired to the present station; it would be peculiarly improper to omit in this first official Act, my fervent supplications to that Almighty Being who rules over the Universe, who presides in the Councils of Nations, and whose providential aids can supply every human defect, that his benediction may consecrate to the liberties and happiness of the People of the United States, a Government instituted by themselves for these essential purposes: and may enable every instrument employed in its administration to execute with success, the functions allotted to his charge. In tendering this homage to the Great Author of every public and private good I assure myself that it expresses your sentiments not less than my own; nor those of my fellow-citizens at large, less than either. No People can be bound to acknowledge and adore the invisible hand, which conducts the Affairs of men more than the People of the United States. Every step, by which they have advanced to the character of an independent nation, seems to have been distinguished by some token of providential agency. And in the important revolution just accomplished in the system of their United Government, the tranquil deliberations and voluntary consent of so many distinct communities, from which the event has resulted, cannot be compared with the means by which most Governments have been established, without some return of pious gratitude along with an humble anticipation of the future blessings which the past seem to presage. These reflections, arising out of the present crisis, have forced themselves too strongly on my mind to be suppressed. You will join with me I trust in thinking, that there are none under the influence of which, the proceedings of a new and free Government can more auspiciously commence.

Read it all.

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Independence Day 2026: The Preamble to the Constitution of the United States of America

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We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

Preamble to the Constitution
Read it all.

Would that God raise up leaders for us who would speak to the vision and ideals laid out in our Constitution’s Preamble instead of creating rancor and division by engaging in partisan and petty politics and playing the shame and victim’s game. There is much talk of justice, but not about justice for all, including those tasked with insuring domestic Tranquility. Where fearless leaders are desperately needed who are steeped in our nation’s history and willing to carry on the many good traditions of this country while addressing the bad ones, generally I see only weak and spineless politicians, our current President excepted (I cannot call them leaders because they fail to lead) who cower at the mob because they are clueless about their own nation’s heritage (or even worse, hostile to it). It’s a sad state of affairs and simultaneously infuriating. There has been much blood shed to defend our nation and its great heritage, and those politicians who refuse to honor our Constitution’s Preamble by defending it not only betray those who elected them to office but also bring dishonor to those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice to defend this country. May the good citizens of this country condemn this behavior by voting them out of office this November. This Independence Day, pray for our nation. We are in desperate need of God’s blessings.

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Independence Day 2026: Lincoln on the Declaration of Independence and the 4th of July

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lincoln19

In the 1850s, Abraham Lincoln’s rhetoric was suffused with a profound sense of loss. He considered it shameful national backsliding that a new affirmative defense of slavery had arisen in the South. At the time of the Founding our nation had merely tolerated slavery; now, it was an institution actively celebrated in part of the country.

In a letter in 1855 despairing of ending slavery, Lincoln wrote to the Kentuckian George Robertson that “the fourth of July has not quite dwindled away; it is still a great day–/for burning fire-crackers/!!!”

At around this time, Lincoln fastened on the Declaration of Independence as “his political chart and inspiration,” in the words of his White House secretary John G. Nicolay.

He made it the guidepost by which the country could return to its lost ideals. His example shows the enduring vitality and the endless potential for renewal that is inherent in the Declaration.

Some good stuff here. See what you think.

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Independence Day 2026: Today in History

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From here:

images

In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the Continental Congress adopts the Declaration of Independence, which proclaims the independence of the United States of America from Great Britain and its king. The declaration came 442 days after the first volleys of the American Revolution were fired at Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts and marked an ideological expansion of the conflict that would eventually encourage France’s intervention on behalf of the Patriots.

Read it all and give thanks to God for this country of ours.

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Independence Day 2026: The Declaration of Independence

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With the forces of lawlessness and mob rule that are attempting to wipe out this country’s history and identity in order to destroy it, it is critical that we know the principles contained in our nation’s founding documents on which our country is based. Take the time to read and reflect on the Declaration of Independence and give thanks to God for this great nation of ours, warts and all.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.

The Declaration of Independence

Read it all.

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