IN-dependence or Dependence

This is the day that we celebrate, as a nation, our independence from Great Britain as a thriving nation, in our own right! July 4, 1776 will forever go down in the annals of time as a MOMENT in time that forever changed the tide of history. Now, over 200 years later and the question remains, are we really independent? What is independence? What did the founding fathers mean when they all signed the Declaration of Independence? I mean, it’s one thing to declare independence from tyrannical rule however; did we take independence too far as we live out our individual/personal lives?

In his book, Winning the Battle for the Minds of Men, Dennis Peacocke uncovers quotes a few of our founding fathers in their outlook on God as it related to this nation:

George Washington
It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible.

John Adams
Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people…so
great is my veneration of the Bible that the earlier my children begin
to read, the more confident will be my hope that they will prove use-
ful citizens in their country and respectful members of society.

Thomas Jefferson
The Bible is the cornerstone of liberty…students’ perusal of the sacred
Volume will make us better citizens, better fathers, and better husbands.

Andrew Jackson
That Book (the Bible) is the rock on which our Republic rests.

Benjamin Franklin
A nation of well-informed men who have been taught to know the price
of the rights which God has given them cannot be enslaved.

William Penn
If we will not be governed by God, then we will be ruled by tyrants.

Ulysses S. Grant
Hold fast to the Bible as the sheet anchor of your liberties; write its pre-
cepts in your hearts and practice them in your lives. To the influence of
this Book we are indebted for all the progress made in true civilization
and to this we must look as our guide in the future. “Righteousness
exalteth a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.”
(pg.49)

I shared this in order to juxtapose the thought or concept of independence vs. dependence. By that I am referring to the heralding call by those who take Independence Day in hopes to rid themselves of alignment with God. When, in actuality, when you look at those who founded this nation, they had a dependence on God while they were in pursuit of independence from tyrannical rule. How different are things now as we look across this nation to see a great many people who pontificate Independence Day but re-align with a different set of beliefs? How different are things today in that we have made it against the law to mention God in certain arenas however we call upon Him whenever a crisis takes place? How different are things today?

I will be the first to say that many of the founding fathers owned slaves, which doesn’t sit well with me at all, so I don’t want it to come across as if I revere them as gods, that couldn’t be further from the truth. My disposition is only to provoke you to think about Independence Day and ask yourself what does it really mean to you? Is Independence Day a day that we, as a nation declare our independence as a nation but yet we personally declare our dependence on God? Or is it a time that we live, drink, and be “merry” forgetting those who have given their very lives for the freedom we take for granted. I would be willing to submit to you this day that we, as humans, are Dependent on God, whether we ever admit it or not, for the very air we breathe. And we should all take this day to be grateful that God has so ordained that we live in a country that gives us the opportunity to CHOOSE! Yes, some of us take this for granted but this really is the most blessed country in the world and we wouldn’t be where we are without GOD!

Now, that's real talk...