United States

Happy Birthday, ‘Murica!

/ Ragamuffingospelfan / 2 Comments

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“The nation whose True God is the Eternal is truly blessed;
    fortunate are all whom He chooses to inherit His legacy” (Psalm 33:12, The Voice).

Well, America is 239 years old today. And she doesn’t look a day over 190. Tops.

Today is the day we celebrate the Declaration of Independence, which said that we would no longer be colonies of Great Britain, but that we would indeed be the United States of America.

Today is a good day to remember all the freedoms that we normally take for granted.

The freedom to worship as you choose? Or not to worship at all? Don’t take that for granted.

The freedom to live as you choose? Don’t take that for granted either.

The freedom to disagree with each other (and hopefully be civil about it) and to even disagree with the powers that be? Definitely do not take that one for granted.

Many have fought and died for your freedoms. People through the ages have sacrificed greatly so that they could come to this great land of opportunity to find new lives here.

Is America perfect? Of course not.

Does she have a lot in her past to be ashamed of? Yes.

Does she also have a lot in her past to be proud of? Absolutely.

Remember this — as believers, we are ultimately not citizens of America (or any other country). We are citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven. When all other kingdoms have fallen (including the one under the red, white, and blue flag), this Kingdom will stand.

Your ultimate allegiance isn’t to a flag or to a president or to a political party or to an ideal.

Your ultimate allegiance is to a King and a Kingdom. to Jesus Christ as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

Now go be patriotic and eat lots of grilled meats and drink lots of carbonated beverages!

“All religious and political systems, Right and Left alike, are the work of human beings. Abba’s children will not sell their birthright for any mess of pottage, conservative or liberal. They hold fast to their freedom in Christ to live the gospel-uncontaminated by cultural junk, political wreckage, and the complex hypocrisies of a bullying religion” (Brennan Manning).

More of My Signature Randomness

/ Ragamuffingospelfan / Leave a comment

cat

So far, this has been one of the coldest winters I can remember. And for most of the nation, it has been one of the snowiest (and I’m fairly certain that’s a real word– or it needs to be). Just about every state in the Union has seen snow and every part of the country has been under a snowy white blanket– except for Middle Tennessee.

It’s almost like a reverse miracle. Sorta like the dry fleece/wet fleece miracle that Gideon witnessed in Judges. It’s also like there’s an anti-snow bubble over the middle part of the state as snow tends to either go north or south of us.

I’m still hopin’ for one good snowfall before the winter of 2014 comes to an end.

In addition to Philip Seymour Hoffman, we’ve lost two more from Hollywood: Shirley Temple and Sid Caesar.

Most people know Shirley Temple from her days as a child star back in the 30’s. Few know that she was a diplomat and activist after her Hollywood days ended. Even fewer could tell you who Sid Caesar was (though if you’ve seen Grease, you might remember him as the gym teacher guy).

It seems like celebrity deaths almost always come in threes. I don’t know why. If you do, I’d love to hear your theories.

Finally, I’m still learning the concept of living out of gratitude and thanksgiving instead of fear and anxiety. I know worry is my default setting and it’s very easy for me to lapse into doubting God’s faithfulness. It’s an effort to retrain my mind to look for all the blessings and see all that I have instead of focusing on all that I lack. It even takes seeing with a different set of eyes– eyes of faith.

But it is so very worth it.

That’s one of the reasons why I blog. I want to remind you (and myself) that God is good and that I am  blessed. Plus, I want there to be something out there that isn’t the usual doom and gloom prevalent in the media these days.