American Revolution Two

“Our debt to the heroic men and valiant women in the service of our country can never be repaid. They have earned our undying gratitude. America will never forget their sacrifices.”
- President Harry Truman

The tremendous cost of our freedom has been paid in full by over 1.3 million American patriots spanning every generation. That’s roughly 5,500 a year or 15 a day since the likes of Thomas Paine, Benjamin Franklin and George Washington staked their claim of independence in 1776. The sheer magnitude of this sacred sacrifice goes far beyond these sobering and haunting numbers. Each one of these brave patriots was and is mourned by wives and husbands, mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers, friends and neighbors. Each of them had dreams. All of them had talents and treasures to share – a life purpose to fulfill. They lived, they loved, they laughed and they cried. They suffered and died. Each of them had souls to which they freely gave back to God so that you and I could live each day in freedom.

How can we possibly honor this most sacred sacrifice? Truman was right. Our debt to these courageous and selfless citizens can never be fully repaid. But there are things we can do to respond to all that has been done on our behalf – that we might live on and live free.

Our reverent participation in Memorial Day is one small way that we can respond in gratitude. How we recognize the day and its significance is vital to our survival as a nation. Without an adequate understanding and awareness of the perpetual cost that must be paid in order for liberty to survive…it will be lost.

Could there be a greater wish on the part of those who paid the ultimate price than for us to fight on, living in gratitude and selfless service to the country they served? Their humbling sacrifice is why we maintain the struggle – it is the genesis of our patriotism and the fuel that sustains us.

We honor their sacrifice by responding accordingly:

• Honor Memorial Day the way it was started after the Civil War by visiting a veteran’s cemetery and placing flags or flowers on the graves of those who died for us. Pray for the loved ones who have wept over these graves.

• Sit for a while in the stillness of the dawn – in silent reverence to these courtiers of our liberty. Ponder the sacrifice, the cost and where you might be without it.

• Read aloud with your family the solemn words of Lincoln’s Gettysburg address.

• Renew your commitment to participate in a government designed “of the people, by the people and for the people.” Ponder what it means to be an American – and make sure your children and grand children understand it too.

• Pay it forward with your devotion and commitment to engage the epic battle for American freedom on at least one of the two fronts we face (read about them here).

If we choose to forgo such actions – on this solemn day or any other – their sacrifice will be in vain and everything they died for will be lost. How else will their legacy live on if not through us?

I want to close with a stirring account of the spirit of self sacrifice paid by these brave and honored dead. During his first inaugural address in January of 1981, President Ronald Reagan spoke of the sloping hills of Arlington National Cemetery and the row upon row of white markers that add up to only a tiny fraction of the price that’s been paid for our freedom. He continued saying:

“Under one such marker lies a young man — Martin Treptow — who left his job in a small-town barbershop in 1917 to go to France with the famed Rainbow Division. There, on the western front, he was killed trying to carry a message between battalions under heavy artillery fire. We are told that on his body was found a diary. On the flyleaf under the heading ‘My Pledge,’ he had written these words: ‘America must win this war. Therefore, I will work, I will save, I will sacrifice, I will endure, I will fight cheerfully and do my utmost, as if the issue of the whole struggle depended on me alone’.”

Who among us will champion Martin Treptow’s spirit and devotion, that this great nation might live on in freedom and liberty? Standing up in the affirmative is the only way we can rightly honor his sacred sacrifice. So what are you waiting for?

“You shall know the truth, and it will set you free” – John 8:32

These three powerful words can light a path out of this present darkness and bring restoration to America. Look around you. It is dark, but it will grow ever darker if we do not set ablaze the spirit of our founding that the majority of Americans know, deep down, is in danger of being snuffed out. The fires of freedom and liberty that ignited this grand experiment are being rekindled, but they must burn much hotter and brighter.

This encroaching darkness is overwhelming and it can literally paralyze us. Anyone with any historical context feels the weight of this unfolding: the unprecedented trillions of debt, the declining dollar, the ever growing dependence of our people on government, staggering unemployment, disgraceful corruption and deception, the devaluing of human life, the rise of Statism…

What could these three simple words possibly mean amidst this darkness?

EDUCATE: to elevate one’s knowledge, awareness and understanding of reality into the realm of truth and historical fact. Inherent in education is the lifting up of one’s ability to discern truth from fiction and fact from opinion. Herein lies a major problem. Our schools and universities have been hijacked by liberalism and the Statists posing as educators who despise the Constitution and our American heritage of conservative principles. We must retake our schools where students are being brainwashed to despise America and every sound principle that our ancestors so faithfully upheld and fought for. But we must also make a firm commitment to educate ourselves – for life. If we stop learning, we start dying. Last time I checked, that big flat screen TV doesn’t pay you anything to watch it. TURN IT OFF! Make time for self education. If we can win the struggle on the education front – both in our schools and in our homes – we have a very good chance of achieving the next step…

INVIGORATE: to give strength or energy to. Can I just be brutally honest here? Not only have we become a nation of weak and timid souls, but we are raising a generation that cannot think critically or be bold about much of anything. Too many of us already lack conviction, courage, assertiveness and the energy to stand for what we believe. However, once educated with the truth and an accurate historical context, the door is opened to incredible strength and energy. One becomes invigorated by education, but in order to be set free, that invigoration must be rooted in eternal truth and cause a breakthrough within. Breakthroughs empower real change and will lead to a level of commitment and perseverance necessary to…

LIBERATE: to set free from bondage or oppression; empower with truth. Few scriptures speak to me like John 8:32, which speaks of a universal truth. If you know and understand the truth, you will be set free. This is why I believe that at the cross section of Christianity and conservatism, you find ultimate freedom. To be free in Christ from the bondage of sin and evil, and free to self govern and succeed without oppressive government, is to experience real and lasting liberty. The reality of becoming all that we are created to be through the grace of Christ’s salvation and the empowering realities of conservatism is something that could ignite the brush fires of freedom across this nation. And all it takes is a tireless minority…

Could these three steps be a driving force of this second American revolution to restore America? Well, as evidenced by my new subtitle on this forum, I believe so. In order to win this epic battle (see American Freedom under siege on two fronts), we must harness the light and energy of these three empowering steps. Begin with the first and the other two will follow…

“Well, the trouble with our liberal friends is not that they’re ignorant; it’s just that they know so much that isn’t so.”
- Ronald Reagan, A Time for Choosing

Too many people can’t or won’t discuss politics. Why? Because too few can define the basic fundamentals of political philosophy. The result? Americans abdicate their duty to participate in government and SHAZAM – we wake up to find America on the brink of total disaster.

Politics is simply the study and application of how we govern ourselves. Some policies work and some don’t. The ideologies and resulting policies of the Left don’t work.  Here’s why:

The core desire of those on the Left (Liberals, Progressives, Socialists, Communists, Statists) is to expand the size and scope of government. They believe the larger, more powerful the government, the better off everyone is. So they seek to consolidate as much control in central authority as possible. To the Left, this is the only avenue to achieve real fairness, justice and equality.

Those on the Right (Conservatives and Libertarians) believe in shrinking the size and scope of government and bringing it down to the most local level possible. They believe in the principle of self governance, and that the government which governs least (and at the most local level) governs best.

But there is another fundamental difference. The Left wants to replace God with government (and are succeeding at it). They believe that the State is the source of our rights and freedoms – and thus ceding more power and control to the State is not a problem for them.

Those on the Right (mainly conservatives) believe that God – NOT government – is the source of our rights and freedoms, and that the only legitimate role of government is to protect those rights and freedoms. In simplest terms, the Right believes government should serve as protector, not provider. This is the essence of American exceptionalism – that our rights and freedoms come from God, NOT the State.

So here’s where it really breaks down for the Left: Growing government to the point where it perfects all human interaction and governance is an impossible goal…and yet they strive for it anyway. They believe that man, and the governance of man, can be perfected. This is why the theory of evolution is the key to their entire belief system. Without evolution, the logic of an ever expanding central government to achieve a utopia of equal results, fairness and justice breaks down and is irrational. And, it has never worked. The consolidation of power as the source of rights and freedoms always leads to totalitarianism and eventually genocide.

The Right understands that neither man nor his systems of government can ever be perfected. This is why the smaller and more limited the government is, the better chance society has of living a free, moral, abundant quality of life where the rule of law – not man – is sovereign. The bedrock of this of course is a Constitution based on biblical laws and principles. Without it, the rule of law is impossible and the rule of man becomes unfettered and dictatorial.

So to my friends on the Left, what say ye? Would you like to debate in the realm of ideas that work, or in the utopia of good intentions that continuously fails?

“Patriotism is as much a virtue as justice, and is as necessary for the support of societies as natural affection is for the support of families.”
—Benjamin Rush, letter to his fellow countrymen: On Patriotism, October 20, 1773

Does the ‘why’ dwell within you? If not, you are part of the problem. Go back and read my post from last week – American Freedom under siege on two fronts – and if you don’t get even a twinge of angst or anxiety – then you don’t have the why. Without the why, you will not have the moral, spiritual and physical fortitude to engage the front lines of this two front war for our survival.

I’m talking about authentic patriotism…deep love of country; a love that could be described as “a fire in the belly.” It is a burning passion to preserve America and all that she stands for. It’s loving your country more than yourself; seeing beyond your own self interests and ambitions; realizing that a debt is to be paid by every citizen to further the eternal cause of freedom. “Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty,” said abolitionist and orator Wendell Phillips. And nothing short of a total “purchase” of this mentality and perspective will suffice. If any revolution to restore America is to survive changing trends and the shifting winds of popular sentiment (i.e. the Tea Party movement?), it must be rooted and cultivated in authentic patriotism.

But there’s more. Having roots in Latin, French and Greek words, the term ‘patriotism’ derives its meaning from the late Latin term ‘patriota’ or ‘fellow countryman’; and from the Greek ‘patriotes’ or ‘of one’s father’s,’ and from ‘patris’ or ‘fatherland.’ Isn’t it interesting that inherent in the root meaning of patriotism, we find an acknowledgment of our fathers and those who’ve come before us? Without them, there is no country to love. Without the awareness of their immeasurable sacrifice – their blood, sweat and tears – their can be no authentic patriotism.

With this awareness comes an enduring gratitude; a gratitude that can be described as an ever present sense of awe and wonder about the price that’s been paid for us. Ultimately, I believe it is an unapologetic, contagious gratitude that must permeate the soul of every American citizen if we are to succeed in preserving this country. Contagious in that it radiates through your daily actions and defines your whole posture to living; one cannot be around you without gleaning a sense of this gratitude. I’m not talking about a polly-anna “all is wonderful” type of naivety. I’m talking about a deep admiration and thankfulness. Without it, there can be no authentic patriotism.

This is the ‘why’ and without it, there is simply no way to save America. Period, end of story. Nothing of significance is achieved without a personal sacrifice of time, talent and treasure. If enough Americans don’t understand why America must be restored and ultimately saved from extinction, then it simply won’t be…

Don’t be part of the problem. If you’ve lost the why, then do what you must to regain it. It must be found or America will be lost…

Start by watching this: Born again American