"And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.
" The Declaration of Independence.
July 4, 1776 Recite this again and ponder about what is being said.
Fifty six men signed their names to this paper.
Fifty six men, pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor for the security of a dream of a free land.
A nation where all men are created equal.
A nation that would be governed by the people.
If you look at this document slowly and recite it more than once, you will understand why it is the most significant document in our nations history.
In it were the words that would initiate a revolution and a war, that would fashion a nation that these very brave men had dreamed and prayed would be possible.
But it would come at a enormously high price.
It has been said countless times, but it is so true.
Freedom is never free.
We make decisions every day.
Most of the time, these decisions are small in nature and don't really touch or effect our lives very much.
But there are those times, when we have to make decisions that will modify, not only our lives, but the lives of people close to us.
People that we love and care about.
When those times come, how heavy and weighty are those decisions.
How many hours, or days, or weeks, do we struggle over the choices that we have, and the final one that we must make.
What do you do? Where do you go? Who do you intrust yourself too? Where do you find your strength? I believe that the Declaration of Independence, if it were printed today, and had to pass the house and the senate, would not make the grade.
It would never get done.
The first purpose for that is, God is mentioned.
They wrote about their "reliance on the protection of Divine Providence".
Our politicians these days can never use the word "God" or make any mention about "God".
That would be politically incorrect.
Never can you use your religious beliefs in any way that shows you use God to help you achieve your political decisions.
That's called the "separation of church and state", which the constitution dos not contain, but that's a different day and a new blog.
The second reason is, they talk of truth.
Truth! Since when does the word truth and politics even go in the same sentence? Our founding fathers thought it did.
They believed in the truth.
Now, I know there were some who were not about truth at all, but that stands to be true in any era or age.
Truth has been in a struggle with lies since the dawn of time, but one thing that we would all have to agree upon...
morals, truth, God, and the Bible were all looked at in a vastly unique light back there, than they are today.
In fact, the bible was a text book in our public schools, until 1963.
Weather you like it or not, this country was founded on Judea Christian values.
God was referenced, talked about and prayed to on a very open plane.
Very few were offened by this.
Quite the reverse.
It was an offense not to reference your God and Christian heritage.
Just read some of the speeches and books that were written.
You would have to be blind not to see it.
But, I guess that I have to be fair.
God is mentioned on a daily basis today also.
I was in a store the other day and I heard some young individuals referring to God quite a few times.
As a matter of fact, they couldn't cease using the name God in almost everything they said.
But it was not in the identical meaning or the same frame of mind that our forefathers intended it to be.
There was no respect, dignity or honor in the way they used it.
Three other words that are on a rapid decline in our society today.
Let's get back to the men who penned this great document.
It is said, that John Hancock was the number one to sign and used large letters, so that King George, would not miss his signature.
Hancock inherited a great fortune, when his uncle died, and became involved in revolutionary dreams that would lead to freedom from Great Britain.
Lewis Morris, and Francis Lewis, from the territory of New York, lost all of their property and wealth during the war.
Francis Lewis was shipped to France after he was taken prisoner.
When he returned, his residential home and land were destroyed.
Richard Stockton, after moving his family to safety, was captured and imprisoned by the British.
Badly treated and in very poor condition, he died a pauper.
Joseph Hewes, who had a shipping business, and amassed a great fortune, gave the use of his ships to the assistance of the Continental Armed Forces.
I wonder if Congress would be willing to go to this extreme? Carter Braxton used his wealth to sponsor the war efforts and finally lost everything.
Thomas Nelson Jr.
commanded the Virginia Forces, which were exceptionally instrumental in the siege of Yorktown in the autumn of 1781.
These men knew what they were doing when they signed their names to this document, and many of them paid a great cost securing the freedoms that we accept for granted in this great country today.
These were individuals of honor, respect, integrity, great courage.
They did not solicit people to do anything that they were not willing to do.
They were true leaders, paving a road for all of us to stick too.
But it goes much deeper than that.
Words are cheap.
Actions are what prove your words to be true.
unfortunately, as I gaze around at the leaders that we have at present, I don't see any of these qualities in them.
The leaders of today, are the first ones out the back door the second something goes wrong.
They have their hands in the cookie jar, as they tell you to go without.
They are all about what feeds them, not you.
I think of the statement that President John F Kennedy said; " Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.
" We need this inscribed every where we go.
" If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
" 2 Chronicles 7:14 I think everyone of these great men, who signed this document, would mutually