Yesterday wrapped up the month of May for us at the office so the next few days will be somewhat consumed with the work of “Month End.” Posts may become a little more sporadic these next few days…
So for today’s “Patriot’s Journey” entry, I’m sharing an article excerpted from Zig Ziglar’s Life Lifters (© 2003 Broadman & Holman Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee). I couldn’t possibly have said it more eloquently!
I love America because we are a compassionate land. If there is an earthquake in India or Turkey, Americans are the first there with the most aid. If there is a typhoon in the Philippines, Americans are there first to render aid. If there is a famine in Afghanistan, even as we bombed that land in response to the terrorist attacks, we were also flying in food to the starving. Even before the war started, America gave more aid to Afghanistan than did any other nation. If there is a drought in Africa, floods in Central America, poverty in Haiti or Somalia, or ethnic cleansing in the Balkans, America and Americans are there to help.
We are a haven for asylum seekers from all over the world. Millions of immigrants apply every year to enter our land. Once they become citizens, these immigrants, regardless of where they come from, are four times as likely to become millionaires as are those who are born here. In short, they take advantage of the opportunities America offers. I love America because it’s not where you start that counts.
I love America because despite what some say, historical evidence is absolutely irrefutable that we were founded as a Christian nation, although we have strayed away from those roots…In the early part of the nineteenth century, Alexis de Tocqueville from France said he had seen everything America has to offer, but it wasn’t until he went into the churches that he discovered America’s greatness. His conclusion was that America is great because America is good, and America will be great as long as it is good.
I love America because of what it has permitted me to do and become. I was the tenth of twelve children. My dad died when I was five; my mother had a fifth-grade education. But because of the concern and help so many people have given me throughout my life, I count twenty-six men and women whose photos appear on my “Wall of Gratitude.” Their help, love, and encouragement have enabled me to become successful in my chosen career and in my personal and family life beyond what anyone could reasonably expect.
I love America because of people like Oprah Winfrey, who was born to a single mother, raised in poverty in Mississippi, sexually abused by relatives, gave birth as a young girl, and overcame all of these things to positively influence people all over the world. Mary Kay Ash started her great company on a shoestring and built it on the philosophy that God comes first, family second, and Mary Kay Cosmetics third in the lives of her representatives. Her pink Cadillacs, won by literally thousands of her directors all over the world, are shining lights of opportunity. Mary Crowley founded Home Interiors and Gifts and gave opportunities to countless people through her charitable efforts, literally rescued several Christian colleges, and provided scholarships for thousands of deserving young men and women. These three women have enriched the lives of millions of people and been responsible for billions of dollars in our economy.
I love America because we are a nation of laws.
I love America because a black lady, Rosa Parks, refused to leave her seat in the front of a bus and move to the back with the simple statement, “My feet hurt.” As a result, the boycott in Montgomery, Alabama was on and Martin Luther King’s crusade for civil rights caught fire. When Rosa Parks refused to stand up and move back, an entire people stood up and moved forward – that’s America.
Most of all, I love America because of the freedom she offers. This is not to say that America is perfect. But of all the nations on the face of this earth, this is the one that offers the most opportunity to those who are willing to obey the laws, go to work, and do their best.
Yes, I love America because I can tell a thousand stories of men and women of every race, creed, and color, with every physical handicap you can possibly imagine who have taken the resources they had and, because of their faith, friends, families, and freedom, have accomplished great things and made a difference in the lives of countless other people. Yes, I love America because it truly is the “land of the free and the home of the brave,” the land where any man or woman has an opportunity to do great things, and most of all to enjoy the privilege of freedom.
It really is “America the beautiful,” and I hope you will do your part to help keep her that way.