Making America Good Again

       Psalm 33:12a says, "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord;"  I am thankful to live in America, and I definitely believe in American exceptionalism.  However, I believe we are an exceptional country not because we are exceptional people; rather, I believe we are an exceptional country because we serve an exceptional God.

       There is a wicked spirit of pride that pervades America today, and here is what it says- 'We can make America great again, because we made her great in the first place.'"  Friends, no human being can make us great again, because it wasn't humans that made us great in the first place.  Alexis de Tocqueville said it best- “America is great because she is good. If America ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.”  Today, we have ceased from goodness (faith in God, and righteous living), and thus are rapidly losing our greatness.  Here are three things that I believe we need in order to "Make America Good Again."

       First, we need to start praying. (II Chronicles 7:14). We say that it is terrible that prayer has been removed from our schools, and it is terrible.  But which is worse, the ungodly removing prayer from the schools, or Christians neglecting prayer in our homes?  The founding fathers prayed to an Almighty God for deliverance, protection, and wisdom; why are we so proud that we think we can fix our problems ourselves?

       Second, we must start living with purity.  Proverbs 13:34 says, "Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people."  John Adams said this- "Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other."  America will never be right again, until we become righteous again.

       Third, we have to start praising God again.  Psalm 35:28 "And my tongue shall speak of thy righteousness and of thy praise all the day long."  John 12:32 says, "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me."  May our lives, homes, churches, and government once again be filled with true praise, as we glorify God with our thoughts, words, motives, and actions!
     
       Alexis de Tocqueville said, "Liberty cannot be established without morality, nor morality without faith.”  America will only become "great" again, when she becomes "good" again; and she will only become good when born-again Christians start living right and sharing the Gospel!

Psalm 145

Psalm 145       

I will extol thee, my God, O king;

and I will bless thy name for ever and ever.

2 Every day will I bless thee;

and I will praise thy name for ever and ever.

3 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;

and his greatness is unsearchable.

4 One generation shall praise thy works to another,

and shall declare thy mighty acts.

5 I will speak of the glorious honour of thy majesty,

and of thy wondrous works.

6 And men shall speak of the might of thy terrible acts:

and I will declare thy greatness.

7 They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great goodness,

and shall sing of thy righteousness.

8 The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion;

slow to anger, and of great mercy.

9 The Lord is good to all:

and his tender mercies are over all his works.

10 All thy works shall praise thee, O Lord;

and thy saints shall bless thee.

11 They shall speak of the glory of thy kingdom,

and talk of thy power;

12 to make known to the sons of men his mighty acts,

and the glorious majesty of his kingdom.

13 Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,

and thy dominion endureth throughout all generations.

14 The Lord upholdeth all that fall,

and raiseth up all those that be bowed down.

15 The eyes of all wait upon thee;

and thou givest them their meat in due season.

16 Thou openest thine hand,

and satisfiest the desire of every living thing.

17 The Lord is righteous in all his ways,

and holy in all his works.

18 The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him,

to all that call upon him in truth.

19 He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him:

he also will hear their cry, and will save them.

20 The Lord preserveth all them that love him:

but all the wicked will he destroy.

21 My mouth shall speak the praise of the Lord:

and let all flesh bless his holy name for ever and ever.

May this be the prayer of all of our hearts; may we praise the Lord continually for His grace and goodness to us; truly, His "greatness is unsearchable."

Random Thoughts and Photos

       Here are a few pictures that I took yesterday-

 This waterfall is fed by the overflow from a lake.  It's not a big waterfall compared to some, but it's beautiful!  (The picture doesn't do it justice!)

       My creative juices aren't flowing right now, and I'm having a hard time thinking of something to write; I'm just feeling rather tired and melancholy!  But I know this- God is good regardless of how I feel; I am so blest!  Today I was feeling rather discouraged, but then I decided to count the blessings in my life and to start praising God for them.  It's amazing how it works, but when I take my eyes off of my problems and start counting my blessings, my problems get smaller!  

       

       Also, I decided to make a few phone calls and send a few texts to encourage people; this is a great way to have your spirits lifted!  And it's Biblical- II Corinthians 1:3-4 says, "Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God."  God gives us comfort in our trials; then we are to comfort others in their trials!  

       So next time you are discouraged, give thanks for your blessings, and find someone to encourage!

(P.S. These thoughts are not original with me; I am so grateful for those who God has placed in my to help me along the way, and who have shared these concepts with me.)

Giving God The Glory

       I recently read 2 Chronicles 32:24-25, which reads, "In those days Hezekiah was sick to the death, and prayed unto the Lord: and he spake unto him, and he gave him a sign.  But Hezekiah rendered not again according to the benefit done unto him; for his heart was lifted up: therefore there was wrath upon him, and upon Judah and Jerusalem."  The reason that God was angry with Hezekiah was that Hezekiah's "heart was lifted up."  God had healed him, but he didn't give God the glory!  How foolish and prideful we humans are sometimes; we ask God for help, but when He helps us, we take all the credit for ourselves!

       Another story that goes along with the theme of giving God the glory is found in Acts 12:20-23.  This story tells of a time when King Herod gave a speech to the people of Tyre and Sidon.  The people responded by shouting, "It is the voice of a god, and not of a man." (v. 22)  Verse 23 goes on to say, "And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost."  Herod died because he didn't give God the glory!  Apparently, God wants to get all the glory!  As Psalm 107:8 says, "Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!"

Praising The Lord

       "Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men."  (Psalm 107:8,15,21,31)  I read Psalm 107 recently, and these verses really spoke to me.  One reason I noticed them was because the exact same words are used in FOUR different verses in the same chapter.  The writer was obviously trying to get a point across!  The other reason I noticed them was because of what the rest of the chapter says.  You see, Psalm 107 talks about how God delivers us.   What struck me was this- when God gives someone deliverance, He wants praise in return!  Tonight I am thankful to God for delivering me from an eternity in hell, and giving me a mansion in Heaven!
So, if God has delivered you from something, take a minute to praise Him!