Thirty-seven years ago I participated in an essay contest entitled, “What Does America Mean To Me?” As luck would have it, I was chosen as one of the runners-up. My prize? A $50 savings bond.
That fun memory came to mind today as I reread the first patriotic essay written by my then 12-year-old daughter:
WHAT IS MY RESPONSIBILITY TO AMERICA AND FREEDOM?
I have many responsibilities to America, but there are three that I thought were the most important:
1. Learning about the Founding Fathers
2. Staying close to God
3. Voting for who we feel would make America better
First, we need to know how it all started before we can do anything. The Founding Fathers loved America, and wanted the best for our country.They strongly opposed anything that would tear down our freedom. Sadly, King George did not feel the same way, and that was the cause of the Revolutionary War. I think we need to be like the Founding Fathers and do all we can to protect our freedom.
Second, we need to stay close to God. The Founders of our country always trusted Him and did what they felt He was telling them to do. Jesus said that He would never leave us or forsake us. And He will never forsake America as long as we stay righteous and keep the commandments.
Third, we must vote for who we feel would protect our freedoms the most. We can’t let other tell us who to vote for; we need to decide for ourselves. My siblings and I always go with our parents when they go vote, and our mom always shows us how simple the process really is.
I know that by learning about the Founding Fathers, staying close to God and voting we can make America a better place.
—–
She also wrote this poem:
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE FREE?
What does it mean to be free?
It means that we can vote and have our voices be heard.
It means that we can go to church and not be told which church to go to.
It means that we have laws that are just.
It means that we have fair and equal punishment.
It means that we have agency.
What does it mean to be free?
It means that we have trial by jury.
It means that we have the right to own guns.
It means that we can write and read what we want.
It means that we have freedom of speech.
“What does it mean to be free?” you ask.
It means that we have liberty.
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Recently in church we stood as a congregation to sing The Star-Spangled Banner. Tears came to my eyes as we sang the third verse:
“Oh, thus be it ever, when free men shall stand
Between their loved homes and the war’s desolation!
Blest with vict’ry and peace, may the heav’n-rescued land
Praise the Pow’r that hath made and preserved us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: ‘In God is our trust!”
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!”
I’ve sung this verse before, but this time I saw it in a new light.
It is my belief that the Founding Fathers were lead to America for a divine purpose.
I imagine there was a time, earlier in their lives, when they loved their country of England, and had no plans to leave. I’m sure they each had wonderful memories of family and friends and special traditions in that beautiful land. I’m guessing that, in many, many ways, it was difficult to leave the only home they’d ever known, but they chose to do it. Why? For an opportunity to create something better.
Reading patriotic essays and singing patriotic songs remind me of how grateful I am to have been born and raised in this country that was founded by these men who sacrificed so much to create something better.
But they did much more than “create something better”.
They created a free land on which the gospel of Jesus Christ could be restored and flourish, a place for temples to be build, and a place for the gathering of Israel to take place as we prepare for the return of the Savior.
God led these men to this promised land, and his purposes for doing so have been fulfilled.
Now what?
My children and I have a deep and abiding love and respect for the Founding Fathers, and for this great nation, but we realize that our calling is not the same as the one given to the Founding Fathers. While the Founding Fathers were called upon to create and preserve this land of freedom, we, on the other hand, have been called upon to do all in our power to:
(1) protect religious freedom for as long as possible (which naturally leads to maintaining other freedoms),
(2) gather Israel, and
(3) prepare the world for the second coming of the Savior.
Our calling is not to preserve this great nation as we know it.
As much as we’d like to, we can’t preserve the land that we’ve come to love…the land where so many wonderful memories of family and friends and special traditions have been made, nor should we want to, for we have been called to create something far better. We have been called upon to fulfill scriptural prophesy by helping to build Zion and the New Jerusalem, a place where the rightous will dwell for a millenium.
We have been called upon to build a new world, the ultimate land of liberty, and with God’s help, we will succeed.
As the stanza in the song so aptly states, this heaven-rescued land WILL be blessed with victory and peace. With God’s help, we WILL conquer and preserve this great nation. But not in the way we likely always imagined.
Will the star-spangled banner continue to wave throughout the millennium? Some believe so. Either way, the principles of freedom represented by the flag will be alive and well.
Our “land of the free” has many glorious things in store in the near future. We are about to witness events more spectacular than the parting of the Red Sea. We must take courage as we blaze a trail that looks different than that of the Founding Fathers in our pursuit to create a new land, a land of righteousness, a land where the Lord will dwell.
Our beautiful nation, now so full of strife and confusion, is marked by God, and will once again fulfill its destiny by becoming “a land of the free and the home of the brave”.
“Oh, thus be it ever, when free men shall stand
Between their loved homes and the war’s desolation!
Blest with vict’ry and peace, may the heav’n-rescued land
Praise the Pow’r that hath made and preserved us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: ‘In God is our trust!”
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!”
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ART CREDIT
Washington’s Inauguration at Philadelphia
By Jean Leon Gerome Ferris
Check this out!
This is, by far, the best world history timeline I have come across. Does anyone else own it and love it? It is 24 feet long, and stunning to look at. A conversation piece, for sure!
You can hang it on a wall, or keep it in the book. This is absolutely going to change the way our family learns about history. 
Salt Leaven and Light 
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