(Galatians 5:13) "For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty as an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another." On Friday, November 12, 2010, Glenn Beck hosted a special show about veterans commemorating Veteran's Day the day before on November 11. He had a group of military cadets from the United States Military Academy at West Point. Beck was discussing the meaning of "Thanksgiving." Thanksgiving, separated into two words are "thanks" and "giving". He also mentioned about the sacrifices of the veterans over the 234 year course of American history. Beck was asking some of the cadets what their motivation was for joining the military. Some of them had family members who served in the military. It was very refreshing to see some of the members who had a willingness to join the military and sacrifice for our nation's freedoms.
Most of us today don't recognize how blessed we are in America. Our freedoms are blood-bought and God-given. It took the blood of soldiers on the battlefields to secure our freedoms in America. We fail to recognize the sacrifice that was involved to purchase our freedom. There's also a cost to maintain our freedom. Eternal vigilance is the price we must pay to maintain our freedoms. Freedom isn't cheap. It's costly. Somebody had to pay for it. I was mentioning earlier about Beck pointing out that "Thanksgiving" is divided into two words. How thankful are we in America today? If we're very thankful, it will be reflected in our giving. Of course, giving comes in many forms. It comes in the form of time, our treasure, our talents, our sacrifice, etc. One of the problems that's evident amongst many Americans, including many who claim to be Christians is a lack of thankfulness. It's evident in our attitudes and selfishness. We live in a generation who complains more and whines more probably than any generation that's existed in America. Why? Those in the age range of the Baby Boomers all the way down to the present generation have been given much in life. People in my generations knows what it's like to be prosperous. From a material standpoint, the younger generations knows more about prosperity than their older counterparts. The World War II generation grew up during the Great Depression. They didn't grow up with the conveniences and gadgets we possess today. That generation had chores assigned to them when they lived at home. They didn't have the luxury to enjoy the things the younger generation enjoys today. It was due to the sacrifices of the Word War II generation from the battlefields of Europe and Japan to the technological boom that America has enjoyed unprecedented prosperity. Many people in the younger generations didn't grow up having to sacrifice like the World War II generation had to. Some of that generation remembers when they didn't have indoor plumbing, for example. Some had to walk to school.
We're a spoiled generation. I've heard the saying that prosperity ruins people. That's sadly true. The reason is because we don't know how to appreciate things like we should when we weren't given the responsibility to work for the things we have. That's why our attitude about life in general is so immature. The younger generation didn't have to grow up sacrificing. We've been given much. We take things for granted. However, as a result of all the blessings bestowed upon us, we not only have much to be thankful for, much is required of us. Luke 12:48 says, "For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more." Those who have been given much; much is expected from them.
This leads to the question in this particular blogpost title? How are we as Americans utilizing the freedom we've been given? What are we doing as Americans? Galatians 5:13 says we aren't to use liberty as an occasion to the flesh, but by love we are to serve one another. We're to use freedom to honor and serve God. We're to use freedom for constructive causes. God's blessed us abundantly. We're such a spoiled and lazy generation. We've been blessed far more than what we've contributed with our time, our talents, our treasure, and our service. We have much to give. We owe much. There's not a generation in America that's been blessed in the manner like we have. We have more material goods than we know what to do with. There are Christians in impoverished nations such as Haiti and certain parts of Africa that possess more joy than those that claim to be Christians in America. I will point out that materialism doesn't bring joy and happiness. I would never try to insinuate that materialism brings happiness. However, it's a shame we can possess so much and yet be so unthankful. All the possessions we have reminds me of a God that's mindful of us and loves us. And yet we aren't thankful.
What do I mean what I say "thankful". Our mentality of showing thanks is saying "thank you". That's just the tip of the iceberg. Thankfulness goes far beyond thanking someone for what we've been given. A person with a truly thankful spirit will take good care of what they've been given. They will not take for granted with what they've been entrusted with. In today's society, we're given so many trinkets and gadgets and within a few days we've abused or misplaced what we've been given. It shows our lack of thankfulness. It shows we take much for granted. We're a blessed nation. We have a resposibility to give back to our nation. We're to give our time, treasure, talents, and our service to our country, to name a few. It's important how we utilize the freedom we've been entrusted with. Our freedom was purchased with a huge price.
Within a couple of weeks, it will be Thanksgiving once again. Between now and Thanksgiving Day I'll be featuring blogposts about the meaning of Thanksgiving. We need to remember our nation's early heritage. I'll be featuring a blogpost about the first Thanksgiving in 1620. Stay tuned for these upcoming posts.
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