“But these things did not dismay them, though they did sometimes trouble them; for their desires were set on the ways of God and to enjoy His ordinances; but they rested on His providence and knew Whom they had believed.” William Bradford – Second Governor of the Plymouth Colony
You and I are prone to forget.
This is why our founding fathers did not create a democracy, but a constitutional federal republic. They had done their homework on how countries and empires had been governed and knew that a government in which people would govern themselves would be fragile. Two principles would need to be put into place that had never existed together in a government.
1. Structure of the government: A structure of limited power for each section of government must be put into place to ensure that power does not grow and become tyrannical. They realized man’s nature is fallen and his tendency is to be self-centered and desire increased power. For a self-government to work, there must be checks and balances so that no one is able to seize full power.
2. Religious Freedom: Freedom without religion would devolve into self-centered lifestyles or possibly end in tyranny. This requires everyone to take responsibility for the good of all for our country to thrive. For instance, pay taxes so that laws might be enforced. For our country to continue to exist, there must be an understanding by the people that, in order to handle the great freedoms, we must all be willing to focus on the greater good. The perpetuation of freedom and balance of power depends on a people dedicated to morals higher than of their own invention.
Today, many of the cultural battles we face center on these two principles. As followers of Christ, we are called to be lawful citizens while also preparing the next generation to understand that our freedoms endure only when governmental power remains limited and is not concentrated in the hands of any one person or group. At the same time, citizens must be willing to accept the responsibility of protecting and stewarding the freedoms we enjoy—including the freedom to worship according to our convictions. This sense of responsibility begins by remembering God’s providential hand throughout our nation’s history.
Psalm 106:13 captures a sobering yet familiar reality in just six words: “But they soon forgot His works . . .”
How often do we forget the many ways God has blessed us? How quickly we can lose sight of the ways He has worked providentially in our lives. We forget how He has delivered us from evil and trouble.
Perhaps that is a foundational reason why God‘s Word includes reminders of how God has providentially worked to rescue, redeem, and restore his children.
God knows our hearts and graciously calls us to remember his faithfulness, lest we forget God’s divine involvement in history and in our own lives and fail in our important responsibility to tell the next generation about it. Judges 2:10 paints a stark reality of what happens when we forget God’s providence and fail to communicate to the next generation what God has done. “…And there arose another generation after them who did not know the Lord or the work that he had done for Israel.”
It only takes one generation’s failure to tell the next generation of God’s work for His providence to begin fading from view. That is how fast it happens! That next generation will not know the Lord or what He has done providentially over the course of history.
Psalm 106 invites us to remember. I encourage you to sit down and thoughtfully read through this powerful chapter and marvel at God’s providence throughout history. Below are a few highlights from this chapter on providence in history.
- Giving thanks by recounting His deeds – Our response is to give praise to God upon immediate recognition of God’s hand upon history and in our own lives. The psalm is bookended by giving praise to God. Verses 1 & 47-48
- Recalling God’s promises fulfilled as well as His deliverance – by doing this we remind ourselves and our children. Verses 4-5
- Recalling our rebellion and God’s salvation and deliverance – Verses 7-8. When we fail to consider God’s wondrous works and remember His steadfast love, we rebel and turn to idolatry.
- Recalling when courageous men and women have stepped up and intervened on our behalf – We are to recount for generations to come when others have stood for truth when they opposed tyranny. Verses 30-31.
- Do not fail to recall – When we fail to recall God’s providence in our lives, we despise what God has given and done for us, no longer have faith in His promises, and we complain. Verses 24-25
It is important for us to remember ourselves and to tell our children when people stood up and intervened. It is good for us to recall men and women who stood for freedom and to tell of these people to our children, lest we forget and lose our freedom.
Psalm 40:10 is a powerful reminder to not only hide God’s deliverance in our hearts but also to share what God has done with others.
Looking at the founding of our country, while not all our nation’s founders were Christians, there was a common consensus that there was a higher moral reality. Not recognizing this brings about tyranny and abuse of power. They realized that for a country to succeed, there must be a recognition of and an alignment with a higher moral reality. This influenced everything about our country’s founding as they sought to put safeguards into place to minimize the abuse of power. Therefore, they put together a constitutional federal representative republic, not a direct democracy.
What are you doing to tell the next generation what God has done?
In recognition of our country’s 250th anniversary, Christian Service Brigade has several resources to help dads, CSB Units, and entire church congregations have fun recalling and celebrating God’s providence in U.S. history. Each of the following includes hands-on activities such as building/carving colonial-era kids’ games/toys, learning about colonial-period clothing and colonial militia weapons and marching formations, as well as lessons and reflections on the providence of God in our nation’s founding and formation. Click here for more details
Individual Dads:
CSB’s Fathering Adventure material, including the special ‘American Liberty’ edition, gives you what you need to create memorable one-on-one mentoring experiences with your children. Included are a Mentor’s Gameplan as an easy guide for you and an Activity Book and Trading Cards for your child.
Churches/Everyone:
Our special edition American Liberty Fathering Adventure Day helps churches host a one-day event where fathers get involved in hands-on activities with their children. This themed edition features activities where dads and children will explore together what it would have been like to have been a child during the 1770s while exploring our nation’s history. If you would like to consider hosting a Fathering Adventure Day, contact: jfiscus@csbministries.org
Tree Climber or Stockade Units:
Use the Fathering Adventure’s Mentor’s Gameplan Booklet (mentioned above) for your leaders and its Activity Books and Trading Cards for each of the boys. These resources are perfect for a special 250th Independence celebration summer activity, helping keep boys connected throughout the season. You could also use them as a kickoff event for your unit’s launch this fall and invite prospective families and visitors to join the adventure.
Battalion Units:
Use the ‘American Liberty’ Battalion Mission to kick off your Unit this coming Fall.
