Monday; June 29

This week is a special time for our nation … or let me say that this time can be a special time for our nation.  I think back to 1976 – the bicentennial – and remember a great sense of excitement and patriotism.  It seems like as soon as the calendar turned over on January 1, we were focused on July 4.  Maybe it is me, but I am not getting the same feeling for our nation’s 250th.  Am I missing something?  I realize that we are dealing with some political and social issues today – but when we think back to 1976 we were just a few months out of Viet Nam and the resignation of a president.  I don’t know that the differences are as much historic as much as they are emotional.  While I am not saying that celebrating our nation is a “spiritual” obligation, I do find some wisdom from the Old Testament.  After noting that there is an appointed time for everything, the wise king Solomon added, “A time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance.  A time to throw stones and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace and a time to shun embracing.” (Ecclesiastes 3:4-5).  How are we approaching this week’s activities?  Sure, it can be easy to discredit some of things that are going on to celebrate our nation’s accomplishment, but why not set aside our differences and enjoy a bit of community joy?  I know there would be a lot of countries that would dearly love to celebrate two and a half centuries of freedom. 

Again, this is not a spiritual requirement, but could we use a little frivolity?  There will be plenty of time to debate and discuss our differences – maybe this week we could take a bit of a break and enjoy being a part of a group of united (and grateful) states.

Think About It!

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