This shall be my last blog post. Well, it is the last post for a few days at least. Tomorrow is the day the high school band leaves on its trip to Washington, D.C. Somehow, my name came up as a sponsor for the journey. So tomorrow my luggage as well as my body will board the charter bus for a 24 hour bus ride to the nation's capitol. There are about 45 band students going as well as 8 adults. Ok, so its 7 adults and me going as sponsors. But we will try to return everyone back home safe and sound. It's the question of my soundness that worries me. It is possible that a computer can be borrowed while away. If so, there will be updates on the excursion.

It's been a few years since my last visit to that area. In fact, its been about 30+ years since my family drove up to see the sights. It should be much more interesting for me now at this age. My college minor was history and the interest in such things continues to this day. I will carry with me at least one book of historical biography. My choice is to read on Lincoln during the Civil War. We will also see the home of George Washington. I do remember seeing that on my visit back in the 70s. He did indeed pick a wonderful spot to build his house. We should also see quite a few sites in passing by them on various tours. My big hope is that enduring the bus ride will be dwarfed by enjoying the area.

Our founding fathers are a fascinating group of individuals. No, they were not all Southern Baptist type Christians but most had some faith in God. Thomas Jefferson really was nowhere close to being an evangelical believer. In fact, he once took a pen knife to the Bible to cut out portions he didn't think really happened. He shredded the gospels down to only a few sayings. Ben Franklin was quite the ladies man. One of my members agreed with me today that he probably lived quite the life while he lived in France. John Adams was indeed a fairly orthodox believer. He was in many ways the brains behind the entire revolution that forged our country. We could go on and on but you get the point. Each of these men including George Washington may not be Bible thumping followers but all of them held a high view of God who was guiding their destiny.

Our country is far from perfect. The honest truth is we did allow human beings to be slaves for nearly 100 years after we were born. It took another 100 years or so before we passed a Civil Rights Act. We still face obstacles such as homelessness, ill treated children, and the whole abortion issue. Our congress can't seem to find their way to make tough decisions without throwing tons of money at a problem. We reached a point where we make our election choices more about our feelings on a candidate rather than the reality of what that choice will mean. Usually those candidates are so packaged that we cannot see the real person behind the image. Anyway, you get the point.

Having said all of that, is there any doubt we are truly the "land of the free and the home of the brave?" Yes, my belief is that God Himself had a hand in our nation coming to life. It does not mean that we are to turn our republic into a theocracy though. The mission of the church is still fulfilled in sharing the faith more than voting at the polls. Jesus lived in the midst of the great Roman Empire. He did not mention political persuasion as the chief tool of His people. He simply told His followers to witness of His life to those who would listen. It was God's power operating in their deeds that would turn the Empire upside down.

That absolutely must be our approach when it comes to living in our society. It is the same approach that believers in places such as Russian, China, or Muslim countries utilize. Those believers do not have the same advantages with government that we do. Yet, they remain mature and responsible in their spiritual life. We have freedoms they can only dream about. But how are we doing with our maturity? We can and should be proud of our country. My hope is we can also be even more prouder of our relationship with God. Remember that His is the kingdom, power, and glory forever. Let's hope we keep that in our prayers for our land.

Bro. Trey