Please join America in this “FLY THE FLAG Campaign”
THE PROGRAM:
On Saturday, September 11th, 2010, an American flag should be displayed outside every home, apartment, office, and store in the United States . Every individual should make it their duty to display an American flag on this ninth anniversary of one our country’s worst tragedies. We do this honor of those who lost their lives on 9/11, their families, friends and loved ones who continue to endure the pain, and those who today are fighting at home and abroad to preserve our cherished freedoms.
In the days, weeks and months following 9/11, our country was bathed in American flags as citizens mourned the incredible losses and stood shoulder-to-shoulder against terrorism. Sadly, those flags have all but disappeared. Our patriotism pulled us through some tough times and it shouldn’t take another attack to galvanize us in solidarity. Our American flag is the fabric of our country and together we can prevail over terrorism of all kinds.
This is to all America’s patriots who are weary. Weary as they watch their country being dismantled bit by bit, with amazing speed. As we call, write and plead with our leaders to what seems to be no avail, it is easy to become discouraged. We helplessly wring our hands as we watch legislation being passed without it even being written, listen to Legislators openly mock the Constitution (Pelosi, CA) and blatantly tell us “the federal government can pretty much do anything it wants“ (Starks, CA). Unconstitutional czars are given power and money that impacts our lives in a very real way. Memos that expose corrupt men willing to execute amnesty without any Congressional input come to light. Bailout after bailout continue without any regard to our free market system or to our future generations. We are afraid of our government.
It would be easy to say the battle is too big and give up. But we must not give up. We must fight on. Because we are fighting to preserve some thing the world has never had. We are fighting to preserve a country based on principles and laws that give freedom and opportunity to any man like none before it.
Remember George Washington’s many losses and great struggles at Valley Forge as his men deserted, starved and limped about with bloody feet. And then the battle of Saratoga where the tide of the Revolutionary War turned in the Colonist’s favor. Remember the internal fighting amongst the Colonies after the Revolutionary War was won so that many feared the nation would eventually self destruct. But the wisdom and integrity of our Founding Fathers won the day as the men at the Continental Congress hammered out the miracle of our Constitution–the oldest and shortest Constitution in the world that launched the greatest country of the world. Remember the continued losses for the North during the Civil War and then the turning point of Gettysburg. Remember the Brit’s resolve to fight the Nazis in spite of nightly bombings on their cities with Churchill’s “never,never, never, never give up” leadership.
As we think of low points of our history and the history of other nations, it encourages us to fight on.
If we do not fight on, what sort of future are we holding out to our children?
Our family’s homes might soon become shoddy from neglect because we no longer can afford to maintain and improve them. Will we yield to some unelected agency elitists who won the debate on the false science of carbon emissions and have “power grids” manned by some distant central planner to regulate our thermostat, and telling us what light bulbs we may have? They would soon have us drive the one to two seat cars that are essentially powered by lawn mowers.
Deep in our hearts, we all know children raised in homes with a mom and a dad is by far the best for them. We’ve seen the frustrated moms, where the welfare state has fed them the lie that they can go it alone–without a husband; that kids will be okay without a dad. And men are robbed of their natural calling to protect and provide for their families and the self-respect that goes along with that role.
The State’s promise to be all things to all people has failed miserably–again.
Are we setting up the young and old alike for the addictions of alcoholism and drug abuse because there is little hope to improve their lot in life? Hope deferred makes the heart sick (Prov. 13:12a).
We fear there are few truly elderly or mentally or physically handicapped children around anymore. Socialized medicine doesn’t pay for their care.
Will we become a nation where Shari’a law is acknowledged and other countries demand homage so freedom as we’ve known it is simply a faint memory of the past?
Slavery of a different type, no longer just in the cotton fields, but in all areas of the workplace would become the norm. Monstrous taxation of the state so that a few may continue to live extravagant lives on the backs of the people would replace the freedom inherent in capitalism. Age-old truths of living beyond your means have come home to roost.
This bleak picture is not new to our world. It is the story of many countries today as it has been the history of monarchies and dictatorships of the past. There is always wealth and there has always been oppression. But America has been and still is different. At least is still is. America is different because America’s law is based on the justice and rightness of Scripture and the truth of man’s nature. And if America’s laws can be destroyed and altered to satisfy the whims of man, instead of the truths laid out in our Judeo-Christian heritage, we are bound to repeat the history of so many other cultures.
Thomas Jefferson understood that our government could become corrupt but always believed the correct education of the people would right the ship. In 1782, he said: “Every government degenerates when trusted to the rulers of the people alone. The people themselves, therefore, are its only safe depositories. And to render even them safe, their minds must be improved to a certain degree.”
Even when everything looks so dim, we must fight on. America is worth fighting for, Patriots! You don’t know the history of our great country and its Constitution? Educate yourselves. Read the Declaration of Independence alongside the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Dig deeper with the Federalist Papers. Seems too daunting of a task by yourself? Seek out people who do know and ask them to help you.
Educate your children. While some students are getting it through teachers who still love America, the vast majority of our children aren’t and you must accurately educate them and your grandchildren. It is imperative that future generations understand what we have in this country and what will happen to them if it is lost. History is important. Truth matters. A significant reason our Constitution was the success it was is due to our Founder’s vast understanding of history and studying previous government’s strengths and weaknesses.
Spend a great deal of time on your knees before the God of the Bible. As Abraham Lincoln said: “Nevertheless, amid the greatest difficulties of my Administration, when I could not see any other resort, I would place my whole reliance on God, knowing that all would go well, and that He would decide for the right.” –October 24, 1863 remarks to the Baltimore Presbyterian Synod.
Study the Progressive movement in the early 20th Century to see where we went wrong. Let politicians know we don’t want an elitist/agency/bureaucrat-run country. Russia, China, Cuba–those are agency-run countries where some centralized bureaucrat makes the decisions for the multitudes. Look at the misery of their people. Is that what we are aiming for? We don’t need a handout or another regulation or another agency or bureaucracy to figure out the problem.
We’re a Republic of the people, not a nation of sheep led by a few “all knowing” and “all perceiving.” We the people are still the basis of our country’s greatness. Offer solutions to our leaders. Call them and offer ideas as to how our state and country might return to its greatness.
As we further understand that governance based on the principles of the Constitution is the litmus test for legislation, and that government is not the grantor of our rights, God is, we will be more confident and vigilant in protecting those rights. We simply need laws based on the powers enumerated in our Constitution and people willing to abide by them. So you realize they are passing laws left and right that have no Constitutional basis? Hold them accountable! Tell others what they are doing and get them out of power as quickly as you can.
Run for office. Be that individual of integrity, selflessness and wisdom who runs for county supervisor, school board member, mayor or state legislator. Understanding the Constitution (and Iowa’s Constitution) doesn’t just apply to the big guys in D.C or Des Moines. It should impact every law we enact at every level. Teach your children the importance of being a selfless people who live righteous lives so that they too may one day serve their country in some such capacity. Quit worrying how you will look to the neighbors if you stand up for what is right. Honesty, truth, courage, integrity –character traits that still matter. These traits may be in short supply in the halls of legislators, but they are not lacking in the American people.
Don’t give up, Patriot. The fight is worth it. The future of our country needs you like it has never needed you before. On March 4, 1861, in Lincoln’s First Inaugural Address, he said: “Intelligence, patriotism, Christianity, and a firm reliance on Him, who has never yet forsaken this favored land, are still competent to adjust, in the best way, all our present difficulty.” May Lincoln’s sentiments hold true 149 years later.
TK
The heroic, bittersweet story of Rev. James Caldwell
by Adam Colwell
America’s revolutionary history is filled with ministers of the Gospel who also served as great patriots willing to sacrifice all for the cause of independence.
Known as the “Fighting Parson” of the Revolutionary War, Rev. James Caldwell was one such man. Born in Cub Creek in Charlotte County, VA, the seventh son of Scots-Irish settlers, Caldwell became pastor of the Presbyterian church in then-Elizabethtown, New Jersey in 1762. Among his congregation’s members was Abraham Clark, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, and more than 40 commissioned officers of the Continental Army. In 1776 Caldwell was named chaplain of a regiment that mainly consisted of members of his church, and later served as a commissary for New Jersey militia troops.
In June 1780, British and Hessian forces invaded from Staten Island, taking Elizabethtown and Connecticut Farms after facing stiff but undermanned resistance from militia and regular troops. During the fray at Connecticut Farms, Rev. Caldwell’s wife, Hannah, was shot and killed. Home with their baby and a three-year-old toddler, Hannah was shot through a window or wall as she sat with her children on a bed. Whether the shooting was as a result of the battle – or an intentional act – remains a mystery. Whatever the true circumstances, her death became a rallying cry, and Rev. Caldwell took part a few days later in the Battle of Springfield, NJ.
It was there Rev. Caldwell went down in Revolutionary lore. The Americans had run out of wadding for their guns…akin to having no ammunition for their weapons. Rev. Caldwell ran inside a nearby church and grabbed stacks of Isaac Watt’s Psalms and Hymns – a classic doctrinal hymnal of the Christian faith. He then gave the pages of the hymnals to the soldiers to use as wadding for their muskets, exhorting them with, “Now, boys, give ‘em Watts! Give ‘em Watts!” The combination of regulars and militia men turned back the British attack, but not before the English soldiers had burned all but five structures in the town, including Caldwell’s church and home.
Hailed as a hero, Rev. Caldwell did not get to enjoy his notoriety very long. In November 1781 he was shot by a sentry, and accounts of the incident, like that of his wife, differ whether it was accidental or deliberate. The sentry, James Morgan, was hanged for his murder in January 1782 amid rumors that he had been bribed to kill the chaplain. There were nine orphaned children of Hannah and Rev. James Caldwell, all of whom were raised by friends of the family. Rev. Caldwell now lies next to his wife in the yard of the church he served for nearly thirty years. The town of Caldwell, New Jersey is named in his honor, and a monument to him stands in present-day Elizabeth, New Jersey.
Adam Colwell is a freelance writer and Chief Editor of The Presidential Prayer Team website. Active in Christian para-church ministry for over 25 years, he and his wife Ginger have two daughters and live in Tucson, AZ
http://www.presidentialprayerteam.com/index.php
Lyrics by Francis Scott Key :
First Verse
Oh, say, can you see, by the dawn’s early light,
What so proudly we hail’d at the twilight’s last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, thro’ the perilous fight,
O’er the ramparts we watch’d, were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air
Gave proof thro’ the night that our flag was still there.
Oh, say, does that Star-Spangled Banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?
Second Verse
On the shore, dimly seen thro’ the mists of the deep,
Where the foe’s haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o’er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning’s first beam,
In full glory reflected now shines in the stream;
‘Tis the Star-Spangled Banner, O long may it wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.
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!
The “Stars and Stripes”, the official National symbol of the United States of America was authorized by congress on that Saturday of June 14, 1777 in the fifth item of the days agenda. The entry in the journal of the Continental Congress 1774-1789 Vol. Vlll 1777 reads “Resolved that the flag of the thirteen United States be Thirteen stripes alternate red and white: that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new constellation.”
It is the right of every American to proudly display the Flag of the United States at their home, their business, and elsewhere. When you “SHOW YOUR COLORS” you tell the world that you are proud to live in the “Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.”
“The flag represents a living country and is itself considered a living thing.
US Code, Title 36, Chapter 10, § 176. ( j )
Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved home and the war’s desolation!
Blest with victory and peace, may the heav’n rescued land
Praise the Power 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!
(Verse 4 of the Star Spangled Banner written by Francis Scott Key in 1814)
To all our Servicemen and women, and to their families, we Thank You
Below is the pledge of nonviolence that Martin Luther King Jr. asked his marchers to abide by. The Tea party movement has been accused of instigating violence since town hall meetings last summer yet there is very little truth to that even from the more radical members. We will continue to act responsibly as we continue to hold government accountable for it’s lack of regard for the constitution and our freedom.
Pledge of Nonviolence
1. As you prepare to march meditate on the life and teachings of Jesus
2. Remember the nonviolent movement seeks justice and reconciliation – not victory.
3. Walk and talk in the manner of love; for God is love.
4. Pray daily to be used by God that all men and women might be free.
5. Sacrifice personal wishes that all might be free.
6. Observe with friend and foes the ordinary rules of courtesy.
7. Perform regular service for others and the world.
8. Refrain from violence of fist, tongue and heart.
9. Strive to be in good spiritual and bodily health.
10. Follow the directions of the movement leaders and of the captains on demonstrations.
Go to http://www.glennbeck.com/content/articles/article/198/39452/ if you would like to sign this pledge to non violent patriotism and also to read more on the five principles of non violence.
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Almost one year ago, one person threw the first local tea party in Spencer on April 15 (tax day) and over 300 people came. Without any planning or organizing, people began filling area town hall meetings last summer. Serious issues were brought to the attention of communities and media, and politicians who didn’t keep their word or trampled on freedom faced angry citizens.
David and Paul used their fantastic 1939 truck all decked out in flags and banners for town parades last summer while Dennis rigged up his sound system for a full-fledged heart swell of patriotism! People spent countless hours listening and talking to area residents about legislation affecting their families and regulations beyond belief impeding the success of their businesses and schools.
It wasn’t long before two people arranged a meeting in Sheldon for like-minded citizens hoping to stop the government freight train of business, bank and health care takeovers. Since then, these two groups have hosted forums with state legislators, gubernatorial candidates, connected with other tea party groups, traveled to Des Moines to talk with state legislators, traveled to Washington, D.C., written countless emails, letters to politicians and to editors, and made countless phone calls.
Is there anything worthwhile of the time and the work involved? Maybe to answer this we need to ask how many times within the past year have Pelosi, Reid or Obama set a deadline that health care would be voted on? Democrats control the House, the Senate and the Presidency so why hasn’t it happened? It appears that the people are doing what “We the people” of America need to be doing to hold government power in check and the answer would be a resounding “Yes! It is worthwhile.”
Did you get how it has been working? It’s Kris who acts on an idea, David who leads a meeting, Paul who constructs a flag stand, Mike who knows what it takes to keep his gun and his flag, Larry who writes a check, Ken who leads in prayer, Tammy who leads a class on the Constitution, Cindy who patiently visits with Senator Harkin’s assistant, Mark who tells us what he learned, Bruce sharing information, Alyda setting up the information table, Sarah who emails, Lonnie who manages a website and people who pick up the phone again and again. That is to name just a few local people. There are many, many more! This is how grassroots works. You contribute in apparently small way and collectively make a huge impact.
America needs you. Your children and your grandchildren need you to take the time, to be brave stepping out of your comfort zone and to do the little things that pool together with millions of other’s that makes a difference in their future.
Let’s celebrate! It’s the tea party’s birthday next month so go find a tea party near you! Don’t expect grandiose things to be happening at the meeting and don’t expect gifted leaders or perfect people. Expect to be vigilant, meeting after meeting, phone call after phone call. And don’t be surprised if your idea is something that mushrooms into a plan of action, or if your help Saturday morning fills a need that would have gone undone. Thank you! We look forward to seeing you!
This season’s snow falls and Snowpocalypse presents a great opportunity to remember our president who also suffered through the cold to save the Republic.
The third Monday in February has come to be known—wrongly—as President’s Day. But, this is not a day to celebrate every president in our Nation’s history: like one who served only a month in office. This is the day that we celebrate the man who led America to victory in the War for Independence, who was instrumental in the creation of our Constitution, and whose character forever shaped the executive branch. We celebrate George Washington. That’s why it’s Washington’s Birthday; not President’s day.
What makes George Washington a great president, worthy of such celebration, and example to all other presidents? In short, he was committed to the principles of the American Founding. Liberty, Natural Rights, Equality, Religious Liberty, Economic Opportunity, the Rule of Law, Constitutionalism, Self-government, National Independence: these are the truths that George Washington held.
Matthew Spalding, in his latest book We Still Hold These Truths, explains each of these first principles in depth and often points to Washington as an exemplar practitioner. For instance, Spalding points to an important series of letters to different religious congregations as an example Washington’s commitment to the principle of religious liberty. In a letter to a congregation of Jewish people, one of the most persecuted religious minorities in all history, Washington explains:
The citizens of the United States of America have a right to applaud themselves for having given to mankind examples of an enlarged and liberal policy—a policy worthy of imitation. All possess alike liberty of conscience and immunities of citizenship. It is now no more that toleration is spoken of as if it were the indulgence of one class of people that another enjoyed the exercise of their inherent natural rights, for, happily, the Government of the United States, which gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance, requires only that they who live under its protection should demean themselves as good citizens in giving it on all occasions their effectual support.
Washington understood that citizenship did not require professing particular religious doctrines. Nor does the possession of rights depend upon one’s membership in a certain race or social class.
Not all presidents are George Washington. But all presidents—and all Americans—can and should dedicate themselves to preserving American’s First Principles.
(from Heritage Foundation Morning Bell 2/15/2010)