Editor's note: Enjoy this devotion written for Devotionals Daily by Ainsley Earhardt, author of America, I’m So Glad You Were Born.
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From one man He made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and He marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. God did this so that they would seek Him and perhaps reach out for Him and find Him, though He is not far from any one of us. — Acts 17:26–27 NIV
Every year as the Fourth of July gets close, my heart fills up. The flags go flying, the parade routes get planned, and somewhere down the street a child is decorating their bike and banging a drum. I love all of it. But as time passes, I have begun to understand that this celebration isn’t really about fireworks and decorations and picnics. It’s about gratitude. And gratitude, for me, always points back to God.
When I wrote America, I’m So Glad You Were Born, I wanted children to feel that same thankfulness, to cheer for the land of the free and the home of the brave, but also to understand why we get to live the way we do. Tucked into all the parades and brass horns is a truth I hold close: we are “free to be happy and choose what we do, and live the great life that God wants us to.” That little rhyme says something enormous.
The freedom we celebrate here in America isn’t an accident of history. It’s a gift, and gifts have a Giver.
I think about that verse in Acts often. Scripture tells us that God Himself marked out the times we would live and the very boundaries of where we would live. That means you and I were not just dropped here by chance. The Lord, who knit each of us together, also chose to place us in this particular country, at this particular time. When I read that, I can’t help but whisper a thank You.
One of the freedoms I treasure most is the one I wrote into the book with the deepest joy: we are free to worship however we please. You might sit in a church pew or pray at the side of your bed, and either way, faith and love of God are welcome here. So many believers across history and around the world have longed for what we sometimes can take for granted. We get to seek Him out loud.
So as you wave your flag this Fourth of July, let it be more than part of a party or parade. Let it be worship. Thank God for the home He gave you and ask Him what He’s calling you to do with it—how to serve others, love your neighbors, and be the kind of citizen who leaves this land a little better. That’s how we stand taller and braver and stronger: together, and humbly grateful to the One who placed us here.
Prayer: Father, thank You for choosing where I would live and giving me freedom to know You. Help me steward this gift well, serving others and shining Your light. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Written for Devotionals Daily by Ainsley Earhardt, author of America, I’m So Glad You Were Born.
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Let’s praise the Lord today and thank Him that we live in a country where we’re free to worship! What a GIFT! ~ Devotionals Daily