The American Dream

What is the American dream? When I was a boy, I was taught that anyone could have the American dream if they worked hard. Well, through years of working hard, staying out of trouble, serving my county in the military, and developing a strong learning/work ethic, I realized that achieving the American dream was not easy (and meant more than just working hard). It requires that you live within the bounds of the law, work hard, be thoughtful toward others, be open to hear others’ opinions, and be okay with disagreement. It asks that you stand up for what you believe in, but yet, hear others, listen, learn, engage, while allowing others to do the same (practicing Christian principles to be blunt).

Well, in recent times the Constitution and the Bill of Rights have come under attack (from the far left and the current U.S. Government). These documents are the foundation of the country and are the reason the American dream exists in the first place. These documents have provided a platform for all Americans to engage in freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and many other freedoms that have helped to build the American dream and the freedom that it represents. America used to be a country that allowed people to think for themselves, stand-up for what they believed in, and practice freedoms of all kinds (within the bounds of the law).

I never really thought much about any of this because it was just the way it was. I had the freedom to pursue the American dream as I understood it (again, within the bounds of the law). I had the right to believe what I wanted, while pursing the things that were important to me at the time. Well, as I started to get older, I began to realize the importance of the American dream. That the American dream was not only about working hard but truly about the freedom allowed by the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights. This freedom includes the freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom to have a gun or not, freedom to go where you wanted, freedom to get married, have children, or freedom to be single. What I did not realize at the time was how fragile this freedom was, and how many countries envied this freedom.

Well, about 15 years ago I noticed a movement using diversity and race to control and take away many of the freedoms that make up the American dream (a group of people started using guilt to push the nation in the direction they wanted). The far left started to tell me that I was part of the problem because of the color of my skin, and that I was racist and needed to change. That my definition of the American dream, which revolves around the U.S. Constitutional and Bill of Rights, was not correct.

Up until this point, I have never really thought about it. My general thinking was that all people were created equal and that everyone had the right to pursue the American dream. I believed the American dream was achieved by treating all people equally, with respect and dignity, and helping those in need. I looked at people for who they were and how they acted and treated others. I looked at them through the lens of what it means to practice some of the principles of Christianity, which includes caring for others, loving them, respecting them, being fair, ethical, and not passing on blames to others. The list would also include a willingness to disagree but still be friends, a willingness to debate, having high moral standards, engaging in the market place of ideas, not being a hypocrite, being honest, trustworthy, and allowing people to live how they want (within the bounds of the law).

As I have continued on the journey of life, I continue to learn and grow, and have become an ardent supporter of freedom and the American dream. But we need to understand that the freedom which has allowed me to define “my” American dream is based on the U.S. Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and Christian principles. This freedom has been eroded by the far left, who thinks that the Constitution is a racist document and needs to be changed.

It is important for us to understand that the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights, which is based on Christian principles, has given us the freedom to define the American dream and the freedom we now enjoy. We also need to acknowledge that the far left and the current US Government wants to change this and put us all under their definition of freedom (which changes daily/and has nothing to do with freedom). The First Amendment of the Bill of Rights make it abundantly clear that our freedoms are under attack (all you have to do is watch the news).

Bill of Rights, First Amendment: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

Friends, the American dream is under attack (my personal dream is under attack). We are losing ground every day; Marxism and the critical race theory are being promoted and disguised as ways to fix the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights, to make America a better place to live. The only way to make America a better place is to reaffirm what made the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights a great document in the first place, that being the principles of Christianity. We need to point our nation back to the great principles of the bible to fight this hypocrisy, this evil, and reaffirm the foundation of this great nation, that being the principles of Christianity. The American dream was built on Christian principles, principles that drive an orderly nation, principles that follow the Ten Commandments, principles that lead to true freedom, freedom in Christ.

Exodus 20:2-18 (ESV): And God spoke all these words, saying,

I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

You shall have no other gods before me.

You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.

Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.

You shall not murder.

You shall not commit adultery.

You shall not steal.

You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor's.”

Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.” Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.” The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was.

When is the last time you reflected on the ten commandments and tried to apply them to Marxism and critical race theory? Do they match up? What is the point of Marxism and critical race theory? Are they designed to free us or control us? Will they make us slaves to sin or help us to break the bondage of sin? I would suggest that they are an attempt to make us slaves to sin, slaves to others, not leading us to freedom and the American dream.

Romans 6:20-23 (ESV): For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The enemies of the American dream are making great headway in their efforts. They go totally against the ten commandments, defy Christ as the Lord and Savior, and get their way by sinful behavior. They want to be our Lord and Savior, they want control, they want it all, while all the time being hypocrites and liars in everything they do. Brothers and Sisters, we need to stand, stand strong, stand for what you believe in, and fight for what is right, that being true freedom in Christ, which drive the principles this great nation was founded on.