Just some early morning thoughts from me to you…
“The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations. Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He has chosen as His own inheritance…
Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, on those who hope in His mercy, to deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine.
Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield. For our heart shall rejoice in Him, because we have trusted in His holy name.
Let Your mercy, O Lord, be upon us, just as we hope in You.”
Psalm 33: 11-12, 18-22 (ESV)“Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper…
‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.’”
Jeremiah 29: 7, 11-13 (ESV)“The Lord to Solomon: ‘If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.’ II Chronicles 7:14 (KJV)
Independence Day, Saturday—July 4, 2026.
Celebrating the 250th Birthday of America.
A dream of freedom. A dream fulfilled under God’s grace and guidance.
America, a Nation as to which the late Peter Marshall, Jr., theologian and teacher, shared decades ago with a small gathering in a chapel in New England his belief grounded in what he had read, researched, and reviewed about Columbus, the Pilgrims, and others, in our history, that—
“This nation was founded by God with a special calling. The people who first came here knew that they were being led here by the Lord Jesus Christ, to found a nation, where men, women, and children were to live in obedience to Him…to truly be one nation under God.”
Clearly the founders of this Nation, and the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence, had a dream they sought to fulfill, risking their lives, families, and all they owned. A dream for freedom, recognizing God’s inspiration for them, with words shared in the Declaration of Independence, like these—
“We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator…appealing to the Supreme Judge of the World… And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the Protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.”
A dream for freedom which came true under God’s grace and guidance.
Martin Luther King, Jr. had a dream for freedom he believed was rooted in the God-ordained foundations of America. A dream he shared on April 28, 1963, from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC, which in part reads—
“I say to you today, my friends, that in spite of the difficulties and frustrations of the moment I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream…
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character…
I have a dream today…I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.”
The psalmist in Psalm 33 shared a similar dream of God when he penned these words— “The counsel of the Lord stands forever…Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He has chosen as His own inheritance…” (Psalm 33: 11-12)
A dream Jeremiah calls us to when he reminds us of God’s words— “seek the peace and prosperity of the [nation] to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper…For I know the plans I have for you…call on Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29: 7, 11-13)
And Katherine Lee Bates set forth the dream of America, in the song “America the Beautiful” when she wrote—
“…O beautiful for heroes proved in liberating strife,
Who more than self their country loved,
And mercy more than life…
O beautiful for patriot dream that sees beyond the years.
Thine alabaster cities gleam, undimmed by human tears.
America! America! God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood. From sea to shining sea.”
Dreams for freedom fulfilled—One Nation Under God.
While remembering, as we reflect on and are grateful for the freedoms we enjoy in America, that our ultimate freedom comes not from our great Nation, but from our great God, through Christ.
In His Name–Scott
Enjoy the video as the iconic Ray Charles sings— “America the Beautiful.”
