What do Eilin, Trang, Juan, and Peter have in common? They all have recently become citizens of the United States of America. With proud and radiant smiles they swore allegiance to the USA. Some people like to “slam” the US and point out its faults. But it’s interesting that millions of people want to come to America and very few want to leave America.

What makes America so great?

First – THE FOUNDING “FATHERS” were great men and women of faith. The early pilgrims and political leaders had courage, foresight, and a sense of God’s guiding providence.

In 1776, America’s founders gathered in Philadelphia to draft the Declaration of Independence. A new nation was born – free and independent – the United States of America. In 1787, after the American patriots had won our independence on the bloody battlefields, representatives met to draft the Constitution of the United States.

The Constitution has been amended over the years, but its broad language is illuminated by the Declaration of Independence where the founding fathers outlined their moral vision and the government it implied. The opening lines are perhaps the most important: “We hold these truths to be self-evident.” What were the moral truths? “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.”

The attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon showed the world how much some people hate freedom. Some don’t like free trade, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, freedom to petition the government or freedom of religion. They believe an elite group should dictate to the masses how life should be lived.

Someone once said, “War is hell.” Yes, war is spawned and instigated in hell. God’s love is giving mankind freedom to choose evil or good, righteousness or unrighteousness, heaven or hell. God’s love in allowing humankind to choose it’s own course (including partnering with evil unto the most hideous consequences) is neither indifferently passive nor aggressively active when horrible things happen. God has always been and is and always will be redemptive. He provided the way for reconciliation – the Cross of His Son Jesus Christ.

When asked who in the history of the United States the greatest president was, most would say George Washington or Abraham Lincoln. There have been a lot of good presidents but perhaps fewer great presidents. Greatness is usually determined by how one handles great adversity. Certainly both George Washington and Abraham Lincoln persevered under extreme adversity and guided our nation through a dangerous juncture to make it what it is today.

Both Washington and Lincoln believed in the power of prayer. Both prayed for wisdom and strength to lead the nation. But all of Lincoln’s ideas came from a frame of reference of belief in divine providence. He expressed this belief best in his farewell address at Springfield, “I now leave . . . with a task before me greater than that which rested upon Washington. Without the assistance of that Divine Being, who ever attended him, I cannot succeed. With that assistance I cannot fail.”

Please ask yourself this question – Is God pro-life? Absolutely! There is no doubt about it. God’s Word is unmistakable. “Thou shall not kill” is one of the Ten Commandments. “I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your seed may live” (Deuteronomy 30:19). God is the Creator and sustainer of life.

Once, while discussing the abortion issue with a politician, the remark was made that abortion is a moral issue. I concurred. But is not the law of our land and Judeo-Christian ethics based on the concept of a moral God and moral code?

As we watched the terrible scenes unfold through the media into our homes, we were appalled and angered at the attack on America. The destruction and carnage at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the horrific plight of those airliners hijacked by terrorists was almost beyond belief.

America is a diverse country, but a united country. In a time of crisis we have always come together as one. A reflection of the unity was displayed as congress and the leaders of America gathered on the steps of the US Capital building to address the nation concerning this terrible attack on our country. At the conclusion of their meeting they began to sing an impromptu rendition of “God Bless America”. It seemed to express our solidarity, our resolve, our love for our country, and prayer for God’s blessing and protection.

Freedom is dear because freedom is costly. On Memorial Day flags waved in salute over the graves of the brave who served and sacrificed their lives in the Armed Forces to give Americans and many throughout the world life and liberty.

The bestselling book Flags of Our Fathers by James Bradley, and the graphic and gripping movie based on the book, portray the horrible story of the Battle for Iwo Jima. The memorable photo of the six men who raised the flag of the United States at Iwo Jima became and icon representing the heroes who fought for the land of the brave and the free.

Have you cast your vote? Sadly, too many Americans take their right to vote for granted. Multitudes throughout the world live under the rule of tyrannical governments. We have the privilege of living in a democracy, a country founded “by the people, for the people, and of the people!” To maintain that great freedom as American citizens, we must, among other things, exercise the right and responsibility to vote. We must pray and participate in government if we would protect our Bill of Rights and the Constitution of the United States of America.

Two of the most honored and revered men in American history are not known nor remembered as much for their statesmanship or great intellect as for their staunch character. As Americans to name two of the greatest Presidents in American history and the majority would undoubtedly name Presidents George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. While in College, my history professor, like many professors, delighted in trying to blemish the character of Lincoln and Washington. But after reading extensively over the years about Washington and Lincoln, it is my belief that they were not only men of character but also men of prayer and men of destiny.

Political ads and commercials ad nauseam will continue to bombard us until elections in November. I’m undecided as to whom I will vote for. I was impressed with the Christmas ads from Senator John McCain. In it we see a young John McCain beaten, bruised, and tied to a cot in a dingy, dark cell as a POW in Vietnam. Senator McCain recounts how a guard came into his cell, untied him, and helped him out into the sunlight. The guard then took a stick and drew a cross in the dirt. That powerful vignette is the gospel of the cross.