For some time now, I have been very concerned about the direction America is going in. People are not caring for one another or going out of their way to help others. Politicians seem to be more concerned about the money in their pockets than doing what they were elected to do: serve and make decisions for the good of the American people. The medical profession seems to have lost control of their own responsibilities, and women have no rights to their own bodies without politics getting involved. The NRA is more concerned about keeping guns in Americans’ hands than willfully not caring about the schools, churches, shopping malls, parking lots, and homes that are bearing witness to the bullet’s victims.
The Congress wants to cut Social Security so that it can fund other more fascinating issues like how many restroom seats abound in their offices, not once stopping to realize the “over 65 crowd” needs that money to survive. Let’s not forget how we as a nation and as a world are treating God’s creation. Will we even have a planet in twenty years? The proliferation of drugs and no means to stop the trafficking of them. How do we take care of more immigrants coming across our southern borders when we are not taking care of our own homeless, the less-financially capable, the handicapped, and “the unseen?”
And I hate to say this but, there is a strong possibility that the Republican Party will nominate “public demagogue #1,” Donald Trump, again. This time, he will bring America all the way down if he is elected president. Our justice system is also tittering on the side of carelessness and lacking no soul when it comes to people’s lives. The economy is rotting away while so many of us are barely hanging onto our lives by the skin of our teeth. Also, those seen as different in race, creed, religion, and sexuality are being pushed further away from whatever Americans say is normal. For me, the education that our children are getting and what they continue to loose as politicians tell us what they should and should not learn, should be our nation’s top priority, but sadly, our children continue to rank at the bottom of developing education systems worldwide. Man has fought wars for freedom for millions of years, and yet, we are fighting ourselves. Why? Everyone blames the president and keep denying their own responsibilities to act in a mature and responsible manner.
I have written three books describing my value system of love, honor, strength, compassion, loyalty, faith, and integrity: “Listen to the Voices of Your Heart,” “The Rive Flows On,” and “God Plants Seeds.” The simple truth about Americans’ values is that we are not centered around God and we are not evolving into a God-fearing country. Hidden deep within each and everyone of us is the potential to do so much good, and yet, we are sliding ever closer to the edge because we have lost our trust in the One who gave us life in the first place. Living, breathing, and walking in His light, Americans can paint their life canvasses with bold strokes and beautiful hues of reds, yellows, greens, and blues. In remembering America’s simple and beautiful birth, Americans can grow to understand their present and renew their desire to follow the light: Jesus Christ.
As we deal with all of the problems I have written about and many more, Christ will never let us sink. He will walk on water for us and bring us home. All we need to do is trust in Him and unconditionally love Him. The rivers of our lives will flow onto Eternity. God has planted the seeds, the answers, to all of America’s problems, and America will benefit from His peace. “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” (John 14:27 KJV).
In closing, I paraphrase the hymn, “The Right Hand of God.” God’s right hand is writing with power and love and recording our conflicts, fears, triumphs, and tears. God’s right hand is pointing to the paths we must follow, even though they are gray and hard. He is guiding us towards the Promised Land. God’s right hand is striking at the envy, hate, and greed and destroying selfishness, lust, pride, and unjust deeds. God’s right hand is healing broken bodies, minds, and souls, and His loving touch can mean so much to all of us. God’s right hand is planting seeds of freedom, hope, and love, and He will unite us all when we place Him central in our homes, communities, states, and country.
The next time we sing “America the Beautiful,” I pray that we will be proud to live in America, the land of the free and the home of the brave, land where we love one another as Christ taught us.
Evangelical Lutheran Worship. Minneapolis, Mn: Augsburg Fortress Publishers, 2006, P. 889.
Anna Hartt
