Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the nation He has chosen for His own inheritance. Psalm 33:12

The nation the psalmist is referring to in this verse is the nation of Israel. God chose one man, Abram (to whom God later gave the name Abraham), and promised him that He would make of him a great nation through which all nations of the earth would be blessed or cursed, depending upon their relationship with His chosen nation. So, first and foremost let’s remember that what the psalmist says in this psalm is directed at them.

However, there are certainly applications that can be made to other nations based upon the sentiment stated in this verse. Nations that accept God’s teachings and strive to honor Him in their decision-making process will be blessed, while others will suffer the consequences of His judgment. Based upon that premise I would like to make a few observations about the United States of America, a country that has been richly blessed by the Lord in countless ways, but one which is now suffering from mass divisiveness, unrest, hatred, violence, and unprecedented rejection of the very vision that drove our founding fathers to establish this nation on God’s Word with the desire that it be, not simply a religious nation, but a decisively Christian nation.

Our generation is seeing the destructive erosion of the foundation our founders laid, and upon which they envisioned a nation whose God is the Lord would be established. A quick review of decisions that have dramatically altered that initial vision will show clearly that we are not what our founders gave sacrificially to accomplish, and to pass off to future generations.

The beginning of this downward spiral began with what some viewed as a necessary change that was demanded by our nation’s changing constituency. In 1962-63, the decision was made by our Supreme Court that prayer and state sanctioned Bible reading and prayer would be removed from our public schools. I remember vividly as a ten year old student witnessing the change that took place. Instead of opening the school day with a student led devotion and prayer, we only heard the call to repeat the pledge of allegiance to our flag, and then a litany of announcements. No Bible, no prayer.

A nation that once had no problem identifying as a Christian nation (although there has never been a time in which all citizens of this country identified personally as Christian), the population began to change. Adherents of other religions began flocking to our nation. But things began to change. No longer did they come to assimilate into the life of our nation to seek a better life than that which they were leaving behind, but they began demanding that the citizens of our nation accommodate their religious beliefs and practices.

The next major step away from life based on Christian principles was in 1973, when abortion was legalized in our nation. Now, 53 years removed from that alarming and destructive decision, over 65,000,000 babies have been aborted in the United States. That is a mind-staggering figure, would you not agree? For a nation that had now turned its back on the principles of God’s Word, it was not a big jump to embrace a culture of death. If you don’t believe that life begins at conception, and that every life is one created in the very image of God, then the taking of a life loses its significance.

Two decades later, in 1992, abortion was reaffirmed. This time it elevated personal autonomy over moral tradition. “My body, my choice” became the mantra. I could give hearty assent to that statement if it was based on fact. However, it is not the body of the expectant mother that is being killed, it is the body of an innocent baby, being formed in that mother’s womb. Her choice had already been made. It was the choice to engage in sexual activity that resulted in her pregnancy. Now, having made that choice, the body growing inside her body is not her body, but the body of a human being who deserves to live.

Move with me to the year 2003, the year that sexual morality was redefined. In the landmark Supreme Court case, Lawrence v. Texas, the court’s decision invalidated nation-wide state laws which criminalized sodomy between consenting adults. This decision set a precedent for future legal challenges to same-sex marriage.

That decision in 2003 played a huge role in leading to another major shift in American life. In 2015 same-sex marriage was legalized which ultimately redefined marriage. Traditionally, marriage had been viewed as one man married to one woman. With the legalization of same-sex marriage, the institution of marriage itself was completely redefined. As a matter of fact, many would say that the institution of marriage became totally unnecessary. Once again, we see a major shift from life lived under the direction of God’s Word to life lived by personal choice and preference.

The final major cultural shift I will mention took place in 2020. It was then that personal preference of self-identification was elevated over biology. God created man and woman – male and female. There are no other possibilities. It matters not how loudly and adamantly one might demand to be identified as something than what they are, his/her anatomy tells the tale. A male is a male, and a female is a female.

Teresa and I had an in-home health assessment the other day, and one of the questions was: “Do you identify yourself as male, female, or other.” To me, that is an absolutely ludicrous question. I was born “baby boy Stewart,” and nothing has changed to make me anything else. You are who you are by the design of Almighty God. Period!

It is not difficult to see how quickly things can deteriorate when a nation changes its allegiance. Our nation’s allegiance was for 200 years settled on the truths of Scripture. It has only taken one generation to move us far away from our founder’s dreams and intents.

So, what can we do? First and foremost, pray. Pray for a return to Scripture. Pray for a return to Biblical guidance to be the norm for our political leaders. Pray for spiritual renewal and revival to sweep our land. Pray for preachers to preach the truth in love. Pray for strength and courage to let our voices be heard in the public arena, by whatever means possible as good representatives of our Lord. And be involved. Those who oppose Christian values and principles are shouting their demands loudly and clearly. Christians must do the same.

Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord. Let’s do all within our power to turn our nation back to Him.

Blessings!