American Pride

July Fourth is one of those holidays that doesn't require a lot of extra work and planning, which is part of what makes it so enjoyable - relaxing.

This year our plan was to spend the day with our church family at Lake Holiday again, but Caleb had bronchitis and was having a grumpy day so we decided to just stay home and have our own celebration.

I tried to get a picture of these three in the patriotic outfits that I managed to scrounge around and find in their closets. They were being a bit silly though, making it hard to get a good shot. 

See what I mean?

Dave grilled some hot dogs and a few brats for us and we looked forward to sunset when we could have the real fun. My mom had given us some small fireworks last year that we never used, so those were on the agenda for our evening entertainment.

Everybody wanted to ride bikes for a little while to pass the time until it got dark.

And, then we broke out the snaps. I don't think any of the kids really had any experience with these prior to that day (maybe Caleb did when he was smaller, I can't remember), so it was something new. As guessed, they caught on quickly though and had so much funny hearing the pop, pop, pop as their "fireworks" hit the pavement.

After Halloween, I picked up some glow sticks on clearance because I thought they'd be good for this occasion, and as it got darker, I got those out as well. A hit!

Once the sun hid itself for the night, things really got interesting with some sparklers. I remember the excitement and FEAR of playing with these as a child, and saw a safety technique online probably years ago that I was reminded of recently - a hand guard made out of a plastic cup. I thought it sounded like a pretty good idea to protect the kids and tried it. However, it wasn't as good as it looked. Both Caleb and Hadley ended up getting burnt! Caleb's injury was because he held the stick too high up right against the plastic instead of at the tip and the heat went through the cup. Being scared after that, even though it only got him a tiny bit, he said he was done. Hadley, on the other hand, listened to my instructions and did pretty well with hers, playing with several of them with no problem. One time though, she made a mistake, reaching over to pull the finished sparkler out of the cup - right on the hot part! - so she could put another in. Her burn was a lot worse than the touch of heat Caleb got, and I put some lavender oil on it to try to take the sting out.

This little light of mine!

I'm going to let it shine!

Reid decided he didn't want anything to do with these when Daddy offered it.

Exciting!

It's all fun and games 'til....

Caleb decided to play it safe and went back to the glow sticks.

Show them how it's done, Daddy.

Our old church, which is within walking distance from our house was setting off fireworks like normal this year, and my sister invited us to come up to watch a few. We debated going or just trying to see what we could from our own yard, but once we started hearing them exploding, it was too tempting to stay home. We carried the kids up the hill and enjoyed the evening fellowshipping with some friends we hadn't seen in a while.

After watching the display they put on, Dave set off the few we had from NaNa too before we headed in for bed.

Run, Hubby!

In the end, it was a pretty laid back day celebrating our nation's birthday, but the days leading up to the fourth were not as light-hearted this year as normal. Instead, many Christian Americans were grieved over the moral state of our country as evidenced in the recent Supreme Court decision to redefine marriage. In response, several popular bloggers began to draw attention to the flaws in our modern culture. From allowing babies to be killed in their mother's wombs to materialism to all forms of sexual immorality to indifference, our nation is not pleasing God. One blogger, in particular, wrote a post questioning our nation's greatness. And, while I am so grateful to live in a land with so many liberties, my conscious, too, has been continuously stirred - often on a daily basis - over these atrocities happening right here that are dishonoring God. My own faults included...

When Dave and I first married, we began attending a Sunday school class led by an older couple. Of all the lessons they taught, one of the things that really stuck out to me was a comment the wife made. She said that every generation chooses one attribute of God to focus on and that this generation has chosen love. Over and over again, I have seen evidence of this as people are willing to allow pretty much anything as long as it is in the name of “love.” And, in truth, “love” is an accurate term to use in description of our Father; the problem comes when we have an incorrect understanding of what love is.

In my introductory Linguistic course in college, we studied how words change meanings over time as their definitions evolve into something else that is quite different from the original. While the world's opinion of the term “love” has come to mean that we cannot disagree, offend, oppose, or cause pain to anyone or anything, that is not the biblical description of this word. There are repeated examples the Lord provides that illustrate His perspective, which is much different from the modern generation’s. Time and again, we see God Himself disagreeing with people's actions and heart motivations, taking sometimes drastic measures (such as the flood, Sodom and Gomorrah, etc.) to set them back on track. Christ specifically says blessed are those who are not offended by Him (Matthew 11:6 and Luke 7:23), implying that His message WILL be offensive to some. Any time someone is told what they are doing is not right, there is going to be some offense and pain as they try to digest their frustration with their own failures, but if that behavior is destructive, it is in fact not loving to let them continue in that way. Proverbs 3:12 even tells us that God disciplines us BECAUSE He loves us. Love is not just giving in to make everyone happy all the time; it is about doing what is most beneficial for their souls, correcting as necessary in a gentle, patient manner, being long-suffering and hopeful throughout the process (1 Corinthians 13).

Too often the story of the woman caught in adultery (John 9:1-11) is misread to mean that God has decided simply to let us and our sins slide by without any form of judgment. It is interesting that so much emphasis is placed on this one section of Scripture in particular since it is one of those that's canonization in particular has been debated based on it not appearing in certain manuscripts. That said, it is not the only passage used. Instances when Christ ate with tax collectors, talked with women of questionable character, etc. are also used to support this view. However, in each of these passages a close read will always reveal that Jesus is focusing on redemption and turning away from sin. Didn't he say “sin no more...” to the adulteress? What's more, let's look at the woman at the well; he didn't just tell her that He was The Living Water and move on; he first pointed to the sin that was encompassing her, showing her need for a Savior. If the Church spreads the message that everyone can do whatever makes them happy or what seems best to them, how will people ever see the depth of their lostness – their desperate need for Christ? Hand in hand with the argument made above is that when “love” is misunderstood and the incorrect definition overemphasized, attributes such as holiness and wrath are neglected. Over and over again in Scripture we are repeatedly told that God is holy – perfect, pure, unblemished. Just a quick peek at the Psalms highlights this as over and over as His holiness is praised. The angels themselves proclaim it day and night (Isaiah 6:3). Within the first few chapters of Genesis, the separation that exists between God and man as a result of sin is seen and the animal skins used as clothing point to the blood shed needed to cover those sins. What's more, 1 Timothy 2:5 tells us that we need an intermediary to access God who is Christ alone – once again pointing to the fact that because He is holy, we who are with sin cannot approach Him. 

The misconception that sometimes surfaces is the idea that God (as pictured through Christ in the New Testament) is now somehow different than He was when He destroyed the Egyptians, made the Israelites to wander for forty years, or struck dead Lot's wife, Er, Onan, Nadab and Abihu, Korah and Dathan with their families, Uzzah, Jeroboam, etc. However, God's Word clearly tells us he is not changing (Numbers 23:19, Hebrews 13:8, and James 1:17). We can't forget New Testament passages like the story of Ananias and Sapphira or the way he dealt with King Herod. Nor can we ignore the promises He makes to continue pouring out His wrath in the judgment of the last days. Psalm 111:10 says that “The fear of the Lord is be beginning of wisdom...” and we would do well never to forget that. God hates sin and can have no part in it and the entire New Testament is devoted to teaching us how to live righteously in light of the grace He has blessed us with so Christ so that we no longer have to be entwined to sinful lifestyles. Christ tells us in Matthew 5:17-20 that He didn't come to abolish the law but to fulfill it, being specific to point out that not even a “dot” or an “iota” would be removed from the Law until is was accomplished. He warns us in that same passage not relax any of the commandments or teach others to do the same. He is still holy and will respond with wrath against sin and always will.

All of this is why a great fear rose up in me as Independence Day approached this year, because while I know that God is a God of love, who is long-suffering and patient with us because He is not willing that any perish, that is only one attribute of the Father. He is also HOLY...A God of wrath...A righteous judge...And, we can be assured that His judgment is coming....

We must be quick to humble ourselves and repent....as individuals...and as a nation. God told the Israelites, "If My people who are called by My name will HUMBLE THEMSELVES, and PRAY and SEEK MY FACE, and TURN FROM THEIR WICKED WAYS, then I will (1) hear from heaven, and will (2) forgive their sin and will (3) heal their land." (2 Chronicles 7:14 - emphasis and numbering mine.) What awaits us if we heed these instructions? Obeying each step of them, leaving nothing out?

What happens if we don't? The book of Proverbs gives us a warning in chapter 16, verse 18: "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." So rather than being proud to be Americans, we need to let our heart songs be transformed into something else - pride in being children of God with an allegiance to Him alone, knowing it is only through His grace we have the freedoms and comforts that we possess. No battle was won without His sovereign hand allowing it. So, as Paul says that he can boast in nothing but Christ crucified (Galatians 6:14), that is where all our pride should bow too - at the foot of the cross. 

None of us have laid hold of perfection yet, but we are running the race to attain the prize (1 Corin. 9:24, Heb. 12:1) and those who are Christians are called not to count the blood of Christ as a common thing, continuing in sin as if our redemption was bought with a small price (1 Peter 1:9, Heb. 10:29). We all have a lot of cleaning up to do, but there is also the promise that He who began a good work in us will complete it until Christ returns (Philippians 1:6), and it is in this promise that I have hope. Hope, that while I can't fix all of these national issues that make me heart sick out of the lack of respect for God, I can at least be one voice, one person striving to turn more over in my own life to God for refining daily.

"...so that, as it is written, "Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord." -1 Corinthians 1: 31