Where do we go from here?

Many of us are either glued to the television set or internet to find out who is, in fact, president of the United States. Judging from the polls, the national mainstream media initially thought there was going to be a blue wave. Those who voted for Trump in 2016 thought it was going to be a landslide from a man who kept his promises. In either case, according to the election ballots, 50% of all Americans will ei ther be heartbroken, disappointed, or some angry enough to the point of generating more hate and destruction. In spite of that, we all have a choice to make, to live by, and more importantly, to be a true American. What does that mean and where do we go from here? Let’s start by answering the second question.

“There are three approaches to the future. First, go with the flow. Most people do and it renders chaos. Second is faith in something larger than ourselves. For Christians and Jews, that’s God. Third is history—because knowing the past is the only way to predict the future.” — Dr. Earl Tilford.

We are currently seeing the results of the first choice. Major cities are in an uproar, having experienced riots and the destruction of historical American monuments, businesses, and public property. The more people who go with the flow, the more momentum this chaos brings. The longer this continues, the more people will continue to suffer from the mob’s hatred and ignorance. When will people decide enough is enough? How much more destruction must occur before anyone stands up for what is right and just?

“Faith in something larger than themselves.” I see and hear a lot of people who profess God in their life stating that they have faith. What I also see is how their own belief system takes precedence over or above what the Christian Bible or the Mikra (Hebrew Bible) reads. Until people humble themselves and yield to what their scriptures say, there will always be a “me first” mentality and there will be continual strife with our neighbor rather than the love Jesus taught. To have faith in something greater than ourselves means God must come first, in all things. There must be a sense of trust. It is not passive, but proactive, joining God where He is at work. When we join God in His work, only then will we begin to see what God is sharing, which is His perspective over our own. The Apostle Paul, a man who yielded to God’s will over his own, shared God’s mindset quoted in Philippians 4:8, “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.”

The final approach to the future is history. When something does not work, and we can read it time and time again in how civilizations failed, why do we think, “Well, this time it will work”? Is that not the definition of insanity; to repeat the same action over and over expecting a different result? Is it arrogance that causes this behavior? Pride? Ego? Ignorance? How far will society drown in their own selfishness before reflecting on what history has taught us?

What is it to be an American - a true and patriotic American? We first need to understand our rights as an American before we can understand how to live like an American. Every American has been given the Bill of Rights, which our forefathers fought and sacrificed for, even to the point of death that every American citizen could have and behold. Our rights protect freedom of speech, freedom of religion, the right to keep and bear arms, the freedom of assembly and the freedom to petition. It also prohibits unreasonable search and seizure, cruel and unusual punishment and compelled self-incrimination. Among the legal protections it affords, the Bill of Rights prohibits Congress from making any law respecting establishment of religion and prohibits the federal government from depriving any person of life, liberty or property without due process of law. In federal criminal cases it requires indictment by a grand jury for any capital offense, or infamous crime, guaranteeing a speedy public trial with an impartial jury in the district in which the crime occurred, and prohibits double jeopardy. Knowing my rights as an American compels me to reciprocate to my fellow American, who also has these same rights. “We are a nation bound not by race or religion, but by the shared values of freedom, liberty, and equality.” - U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

The USCIS website lists the responsibilities that all citizens should exercise and respect. “Some of these responsibilities are legally required of every citizen, but all are important to ensuring that America remains a free and prosperous nation.” Those responsibilities are: support and defend the Constitution; stay informed of the issues affecting your community; participate in the democratic process; respect and obey federal, state, and local laws; respect the rights, beliefs, and opinion of others; participate in your local community; pay income and other taxes honestly, and on time, to federal, state and local authorities; serve on a jury when called upon; and defend the country if the need should arise.

A dear friend of mine, Knox Bishop, shared that he believed rights and responsibilities are in fact inseparable - two sides of the same coin - one cannot exist without the other. I never stopped long enough to think about this until he brought it up. I completely agree. Any right I have been given, I also have the responsibility to protect, not only for myself, but for all who live under the rights of being an American. On December 4, 1983 I swore an oath “that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear truth, faith and allegiance to the same;…” For a veteran, the oath has no expiration date and it is not a person we defend, but the Constitution.

As an American, these rights and responsibilities have nothing to do with serving in the military or not. They have nothing to do with politics or religion. It does not matter if you have great wealth or are poor, if you graduated with a doctorate or barely managed to finish high school. Our American history, shared by Thomas Jefferson, teaches us that these rights are “endowed by our Creator” and that they are “inalienable” (unable to be taken away from or given away by the possessor). They are not the creation of mankind. They are the gift of our Creator God. Bishop said, “If we miss-align our personal compass away from this true source, our personal choices will always go wrong, and our personal wrong choices when compounded across all other persons will mean that our society’s choices will similarly go wrong.”

Anyone who does not uphold these rights and responsibilities cannot be a true American, regardless of presidential status.