The Conchshell Chronicles - Our Newsletter

This morning, I heard the famous film maker Ken Burns (The Civil War, Prohibition, etc) say something very profound that caused me to consider why I celebrate the 4^Th of July each year. In essence, here is what Ken said:

“Besides the Birth of Christ, the most important event in human history is the American Revolution. Before, men were subject to other men and governments, but the Founders      proclaimed that God had given men and women inalienable rights to Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. They       were no longer subject to men but now God alone. Since then,       civilizations all over the world have tried to copy the ideals of the American Revolution.”

The Birth of Christ and his mission on Earth set mankind free from the curse of sin and separation from God, for those who choose to accept Him as Lord. Most of the Founders of our country were men who had been educated in the Hebrew and Greek language and who read the Scriptures with assurance    of their origin from God Himself. They believed that in the Scriptures, God laid out His plan for humanity and His values  for their lives and relationships with others.

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

There was a song by Barry McGuire that hit the charts on 1965 called Eve of Destruction. Maybe you remember his raspy voice singing:

The Eastern world, it is exploding

Violence flarin, bullets loadin’

You’re old enough to kill

But not for voting

And even the Jordan River has bodies floatin

But your tell me over and over and over again my friend

Ah, you don’t believe we’re on the eve of destruction.

In 1965 we had just had the Cuban Missile Crisis where  Russia and the U.S. almost went to nuclear war. The Vietnam War was heating up. Egyptians, Syrians and Jordanians were rattling their sabers for another war with Israel, while we had sent the Gemini astronauts into space for four days. Racial  tensions were high in the South as Martin Luther King launched his non-violent protest over Jim Crow laws.

Now 60 years later, we have ‘violence flaring’ and some think we are on the ‘eve of destruction’.

Yet we made it through those turbulent years, 18 year- olds got the right to vote. Israel, Jordan and Egypt have peace and trade treaties with each other. We elected an African American/Caucasian president who served for two terms.

It was a usual early morning when I awoke at about 4:30 am looking forward to see how the sun would rise.  To my surprise as soon as I walk out of the room into the kitchen, I saw the bright full moon over the water through our glass window.  It was a scene I had never witnessed before because there was also a sailboat to the left of our dock and the moon shining and creating the perfect water reflection. Breathtaking!  This was a completion of a vision that we would one day have a sail boat next to the dock .

Pleasure, Power and Possessions are not enough to satisfy that deep need we have for purpose and relationship. It’s because we humans are created in God’s image, and He has placed His desires for us within our DNA. Nothing else will fill that place He holds in our lives.

Being Thankful is an American tradition. It began with the settlers who arrived in Massachusetts in 1620. They had a rough first winter, where over half of the original 108 died of disease and the harshness of the winter. The following year, 1621, God supplied a Native American who spoke English who taught them how to plant crops in this New World. If it wasn’t God, then it was one of those incredible history-changing coincidences. They decided to have a celebration at harvest time to give thanks to God for their provision. They had many reasons to give thanks.

President George Washington called for a “celebratory day of thanksgiving and prayer” in 1789 after years of war with England and the establishment of the American Republic.  He and his fellow Revolutionaries had many reasons to     celebrate- they had defeated the mightiest army in the world!

President Abraham Lincoln likewise issued a proclamation for a national day of thanksgiving after the Battle of Gettysburg during the American Civil War for Thursday, November 26, 1863. The greatest threat to the united Republic had been   defeated- they had many reasons to give thanks. After that,  “Thanksgiving Day” became an American tradition which was finally set into law as a national holiday on the fourth Thursday in November by President Franklin Roosevelt in 1941 after years of economic depression.

Getting through the Great Depression was reason enough for our nation to give thanks. Within a month of that first    official Thanksgiving Day we would be attacked by the Japanese Empire at Pearl Harbor and within days Nazi Germany would declare war against the United States. That war would last      for the next four years, and with victory over these two evil empires, we had many many reasons to give thanks.

See the trend? When we face national struggles successfully, our nation afterward turns to God to give thanks for His intervention into our affairs.

God's Plan, Our Part

I’ve often heard it said : “God’s got it covered. He’s in charge. I don’t worry about anything.”

Others say “I’m worried about the future. I want to make sure I make the right decisions.”

Which one is correct?  One or the other? Could both be?

For those who don’t believe     in God, and there is no rational reason for life, then our choices are either very important, or they don’t matter at all.

For some who believe in God and His plan for humanity, they trust in His sovereignty and decide they can sit back and watch Him do what He will do.

What is the reality? Is God in charge? Does He have a plan for these next days, months, and years that is unfolding before our eyes?

What is our place in God’s plan? Is there one?

In my practice of becoming a more appreciative human, I was driving down the road and thanking God for the beauty of the blue bright sky and the birds I noticed flying by. At the Intersection the light turned red and as I stopped,  I noticed a butterfly free and beautifully fluttering about. I let out a gasp of delight and at the same moment a vehicle came through the intersection and rammed into the butterfly. I gasped again, but this time in shock and disappointment.   My heart sunk for a second at this brief red light stop and I pondered the meaning. 

 When the light turned green, I knew I had to move on to my next fun event: Dance class at Christi’s and my coveted quiet time which includes stretch, strengthen, reflect, and listen.  I have been trying to practice hearing clearly my orders from above rather than making my own up as I go which has always been my tendency and the battle zone in my life.  God’s way or my way or their way.