Ronald Reagan's Tribute to Patriotism
Ask Not What Your Country Can do For You
(Proverbs 22:28) "Remove not the ancient landmark, which thy fathers have set."
(Proverbs 23:10) "Remove not the old landmark; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless:"
America, America, God shed his grace on thee, and crown thy good with brotherhood from sea to shining sea---America the Beautiful
In order for we as Americans to understand our heritage and to understand about the greatness of our county, it's crucial that we have a proper knowledge and understanding of history. It's imperative that parents and teachers in the schools teach and drill into the young people the subject of U.S. History. It's important for young as well as the middle aged to understand the origins of our nation. It's important for us to know how our nation began and what has preserved this country throughout the 234 years of history. America is a very unique and a very special country. Former president Ronald Reagan, in his campaigning for former Senator Barry Goldwater for president in 1964, made a chilling statement and said "If we lose freedom here (America), there's no place to escape to. This is the last stand on earth." He made that statement in 1964. America is the only country on earth that has enjoyed the freedom that we've enjoyed over the last 234 years ago. Why is it so important to know American history? If we don't know our history, we are doomed to repeat history as the Spanish philosopher George Santayana so stated years ago. Americans today are at a handicap because we've raised the last few generations who don't possess a proper understanding of American history. It's destroying us. That's why many Americans have voted for the same politicians they've voted for in the last several decades. Until recently, many Americans have allowed the federal government to rock them to sleep until Barack Obama became president in 2009. Since that time through the efforts of Jim Sumpter, Glenn Beck, Michael Savage, and a few other radio talk show hosts, many Americans are beginning to understand the crisis facing America.
As I speak America already has accumulated at least 14.3 trillion dollars in debt and that is subject to grow even further. Through the efforts of the newly formed Tea Party in 2009, the American people elected over 60+ Republicans to the House of Representatives which resulted in one of the greatest turnovers in the House of Representatives since 1938. We can't trust most of the Republicans that are leading the House as of present. However, America's hope is not in John Boehner, Michelle Bachmann, or Ron Paul, to name a few. Anyone that thinks that a politician is going to save America is fooling themselves. They've all been bought and co-opted by globalist forces. Even those that make the right statements are greatly lacking. If there's any hope left in America, it will be through God's people. It will require God's people humbling themselves and the Lord sending a Heaven-sent awakening to awaken this great nation. Our problems are at the very root spiritual. America's problems aren't going to be solved through the political process. The reason why there are so many political problesm today is simply because America is coming apart at the seams spiritually. If America's house was in order spiritually, I guarantee you America's economic and political house would be in order as well. I also guarantee you most of the incumbents that are in Congress and in many of the state legislatures today wouldn't be in office.
I believe America is the greatest country in the world. Even though America is in rapid decline, we still have much we can appreciate. That's why it's so important to learn American history. It's important to teach children American history so they can learn the roots of this great country. They need to know what built this great country. This great country was build on the preaching of the Word of God. That's what provided America's moral and spiritual foundation. Economically America was built on capitalism or the free enterprise system. The American founders believed the greatness of America didn't rely upon government programs or government welfare. They recognize it's the ordinary person exercising their God-given talents is what has made America great economically. The ordinary American was given the freedom to become an entrepreneur to use their talents to create and build a successful business. As a result, it helped provide a living for many families in America. It was the average ordinary American who helped build the great middle class. It was those Americans who had the willingness to create, labor, and innovate that made American the success she is today. God blessed those people and as a result America has been the wealthiest country ever in the history of this country. It wasn't due to the ruling elites in Washington or great statesmen in American history. It was ordinary people who knew how to create and operate a business. We live in a generation today where some people have this mentality that government is to provide and meet their needs financially, emotionally, and socially. That wasn't the mentality of our founders. The Puritans and Pilgrims who came to America had to sweat and labor to establish a colony. There was no government handouts to give. America was a wilderness during the 1620's and 1630's.
Why is it imperative that parents teach their children history? I have just stated the first answer with the statement that the Puritans and Pilgrims came to an America that was a wilderness. When the Pilgrims and Puritans sailed to America, many of them risked their lives to come to this great land. Several Pilgrims died on their journed to Plymouth in 1620. Several died of sickness. They left England because they had a purpose. They wanted the opportunity and freedom to worship God without the government dictating to them how to worship God. They were willing to lose everything they had just to make their journey to the unknown world. America at that time was an undeveloped country. The only colony that had been established prior to the Plymouth colony was Jamestown in 1607. Those who came to American didn't possess the type of conveniences we are accustomed to today. The Pilgrims and Puritans didn't sail to America on a nice cruise ship with warm, comfortable rooms with nice beds in them. When they arrived in Massachusetts, there was no Days Inn or nice hotels like America possesses today. There was no shelter. They had to build their own shelter. There were no restaurants such as Outback Steakhouse or Shoney's where they could stop to partake of a nice, warm meal. There were no automobiles in which the Pilgrims could use to travel from point A to point B. Colonial America didn't enjoy nor know of such luxuries. We live in such a pampered generation that we've allowed ourselves to forget and become ungrateful of all the sacrifices that have been made on our behalf. It took two centuries for Americans to enjoy the benefits they enjoy today. Today we complain of the slightest inconvenience we may experience. We complain if the eggs aren't cooked properly or if the beans are scorched on the stove. We complain when we don't possess the latest styles in shoes or clothing. We don't have enough sense to realize how blessed we are. I've never had to live in a wilderness creating my own form of shelter nor have I had to slaughter animals for my own food. However, our earliest settlers had to do so. If they didn't they would starve to death. They had to work. There was no unemployment benefits you could draw from the federal government. At that time, England was in charge of the colonies. There was no official country such as the United States at the time. Creating a living wasn't easy. They had to build this nation from scratch. It took four centuries to develop America into the country it is today. That's why it's so important for young people to know history. They need to know the origins of America, the settlers who came to settle this country, and what America consisted of when the first colony was formed. America today doesn't even remotely resemble the America of yesteryear. Due to the advancement of technology, we've become the most developed nation in the world. Technology has made life much easier in many ways. Yet technology has made life more complicated as well. But we wouldn't enjoy many of the gadgets and conveniences we have today if it weren't for the creativity and innovation of America's past entrepreneurs. It's due to the labor and sacrifice of our forefathers that we enjoy the blessings we possess today.
I'm going to continue this thought on "Appreciating America's Heritage" in another post. There's more material that I want to cover in the next post on this particular thought. I'm going to continue the thought on the different reasons why it's important for parents to teach their children about American history in the next post two weeks from today.
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