Do you ever look around and ask yourself, “What is happening to our country?” A lot of people I come in contact with do. We see the growing acceptance of socialism among young people, particularly college students; historical revisionism wherein schools and colleges deny our Christian heritage; character assassination in politics; the politics of destruction; coarsening of the culture showing up in the form of ubiquitous profanity, road rage, incivility, mass shootings, rampant drug abuse, Internet “flaming,” epidemic cheating, sexually explicit advertising, gratuitous violence on television and in computer games, and workplace violence; anti-Christian bias in the media, education, and public square; mob violence in the streets of big cities; and disrespect for the American flag and national anthem. It’s no wonder a lot of Americans—particularly Christians—can be heard saying, “This isn’t the America I grew up in.”
The overwhelming majority of America’s Founders were Christians. Our nation was settled by people seeking religious freedom; people who had been persecuted by European kings and queens for professing religions different than those of the reigning royal families in their countries. Religious freedom—the freedom to practice the religion of one’s choice or to practice no religion at all without coercion or interference from the government—was one of the key founding principles of our country. Because most of our Founders were Christians—30 of the 58 signers of the Declaration of Independence held seminary degrees—America was founded on Christian principles.
Unfortunately, over the years we have drifted farther and farther from the Christian principles that were the foundation of our nation. Not surprisingly, the farther we have drifted from our Christian roots, the worse things have become in America. This is why my friend Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North and I wrote our new book VETERANS’ LAMENT: Is This the America Our Heroes Fought For? Our book is being released on October 6th and is available from all major booksellers.
In our book we interviewed and surveyed more than 500 military veterans to determine what they think about our country’s drift away from its Christian roots. It seemed appropriate to ask men and women who fought for our country what they thought about its current direction. Not surprisingly, the veterans we interviewed and surveyed are not happy with what they are seeing and hearing every day. They fought for an America in which religious freedom was respected and protected, individual freedom was paramount, human decency was expected of people, incivility and bad manners were frowned on, the American flag and national anthem were respected, mob violence was not accepted much less encouraged by government officials, and God was the God of Holy Scripture, not the government.
One of the veterans we interviewed for our book was so distressed he claimed we should replace the words of the song, “God bless America,” with “God help America.” Ollie North and I understand this veteran’s sentiments. It is our prayer that God will indeed help America, but we also pray he will continue to bless our country. This is why our book is written not just for veterans, but for all Americans who believe in the Founder’s vision of a nation based on Christian principles. To this end, our book is a call to action for all Americans—particularly believers—to stand up and speak out for what is good and right about our country. Don’t let your voice be cancelled by the “Cancel Culture.”
The theme of our book comes from Ephesians 6:13-18 where we read: “Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil days, and having done all to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace.” When you look around you and don’t like what you see in contemporary society, remember that all that is necessary for evil to prevail is for good men and women to remain silent. Our new book will equip you to speak up on behalf of the America envisioned by our Founders, but in ways that honor the God who has long blessed our country. Please help us spread the word about this new book!
Dr. Goetsch is the author of Veteran’s Lament: Is This the America We Fought For? and Christian Women on the Job: Excelling at Work without Compromising Your Faith, Fidelis Books, an imprint of Post Hill Press.
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