June 27, 2024

Ronald Reagan and His Love of Country

President Ronald Reagan, in his great farewell speech to the nation on 1/11/1989, spoke of “The great rediscovery, a rediscovery of our values and our common sense.” Here is that portion of the speech:

“...And in all of that time, I won a nickname, ‘The Great Communicator.’ But I never thought it was my style or the words I used that made a difference; it was the content. I wasn’t a great communicator, but I communicated great things, and they didn’t spring full bloom from my brow; they came from the heart of a great nation—from our experience, our wisdom, and our belief in the principles that have guided us for two centuries. They called it the Reagan Revolution. Well, I’ll accept that, but for me, it always seemed more like the great rediscovery, a rediscovery of our values and our common sense…”

Sadly, the ground gained under Reagan has been lost. America finds herself once again needing to rediscover her roots. Reagan spoke of those roots in his speech:

“...For me, there was a fork in the river, and it was right in the middle of my life. I never meant to go into politics. It wasn’t my intention when I was young. But I was raised to believe you had to pay your way for the blessings bestowed on you. I was happy with my career in the entertainment world, but I ultimately went into politics because I wanted to protect something precious.

“Ours was the first revolution in the history of mankind that truly reversed the course of government, and with three little words: ‘We the People.’ ‘We the People’ tell the government what to do; it doesn’t tell us. ‘We the People’ are the driver; the government is the car. And we decide where it should go, and by what route, and how fast. Almost all the world’s constitutions are documents in which governments tell the people what their privileges are. Our Constitution is a document in which "We the People" tell the government what it is allowed to do. ‘We the People’ are free. This belief has been the underlying basis for everything I’ve tried to do these past eight years.

“But back in the 1960s, when I began, it seemed to me that we’d begun reversing the order of things—that through more and more rules and regulations and confiscatory taxes, the government was taking more of our money, more of our options, and more of our freedom. I went into politics in part to put up my hand and say, ‘Stop.’ I was a citizen politician, and it seemed the right thing for a citizen to do.

“I think we have stopped a lot of what needed stopping. And I hope we have once again reminded people that man is not free unless government is limited. There’s a clear cause and effect here that is as neat and predictable as a law of physics: As government expands, liberty contracts…”

Reagan’s call for a return to limited government went largely unheeded. Now, we are feeding the beast - a globalist, Marxist-leaning, out-of-control behemoth. This creature is also feeding the American people lies about who we are as a people, and making every attempt to rob us of patriotism and love of country. The “shining city on a hill” is now considered the oppressive dream of racists and tyrants. Reagan also spoke of this “city” and his love for it:

“...Finally, there is a great tradition of warnings in Presidential farewells, and I’ve got one that’s been on my mind for some time. But oddly enough, it starts with one of the things I’m proudest of in the past eight years: the resurgence of national pride that I called the new patriotism. This national feeling is good, but it won’t count for much, and it won’t last unless it’s grounded in thoughtfulness and knowledge.

“An informed patriotism is what we want. And are we doing a good enough job teaching our children what America is and what she represents in the long history of the world? Those of us who are over 35 or so years of age grew up in a different America. We were taught, very directly, what it means to be an American. And we absorbed, almost in the air, a love of country and an appreciation of its institutions. If you didn’t get these things from your family, you got them from the neighborhood, from the father down the street who fought in Korea, or the family who lost someone at Anzio. Or you could get a sense of patriotism from school. And if all else failed you could get a sense of patriotism from the popular culture. The movies celebrated democratic values and implicitly reinforced the idea that America was special. TV was like that, too, through the mid-sixties.

“But now, we’re about to enter the nineties, and some things have changed. Younger parents aren’t sure that an unambivalent appreciation of America is the right thing to teach modern children. And as for those who create the popular culture, well-grounded patriotism is no longer the style. Our spirit is back, but we haven’t reinstitutionalized it. We’ve got to do a better job of getting across that America is freedom: freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of enterprise. And freedom is special and rare. It’s fragile; it needs production [protection].

“So, we’ve got to teach history based not on what’s in fashion but what’s important: why the Pilgrims came here, who Jimmy Doolittle was, and what those 30 seconds over Tokyo meant. You know, four years ago, on the 40th anniversary of D-day, I read a letter from a young woman writing to her late father, who’d fought on Omaha Beach. Her name was Lisa Zanatta Henn, and she said, ‘We will always remember, we will never forget what the boys of Normandy did.’ Well, let’s help her keep her word. If we forget what we did, we won’t know who we are. I’m warning of an eradication of the American memory that could result, ultimately, in an erosion of the American spirit. Let’s start with some basics: more attention to American history and a greater emphasis on civic ritual.

“And let me offer lesson number one about America: All great change in America begins at the dinner table. So, tomorrow night in the kitchen I hope the talking begins. And children, if your parents haven’t been teaching you what it means to be an American, let ’em know and nail ’em on it. That would be a very American thing to do.

“And that’s about all I have to say tonight, except for one thing. The past few days, when I’ve been at that window upstairs, I’ve thought a bit of the “shining city upon a hill.” The phrase comes from John Winthrop, who wrote it to describe the America he imagined. What he imagined was important because he was an early Pilgrim, an early freedom man. He journeyed here on what today we’d call a little wooden boat, and like the other Pilgrims, he was looking for a home that would be free.

“I’ve spoken of the shining city all my political life, but I don’t know if I ever quite communicated what I saw when I said it. But in my mind, it was a tall, proud city built on rocks stronger than oceans, windswept, God-blessed, and teeming with people of all kinds living in harmony and peace; a city with free ports that hummed with commerce and creativity...”(1)

As you know, there’s a presidential debate tonight. I’ll be praying. But I won’t be praying for a political party or a man. I’ll be asking God to give His favor to the man who can best lead us in rediscovering who we are as a nation. I’ll ask God to give favor to the man who believes most in “We the people…” And I’ll ask for His grace on who He knows believes most in “the city on a hill.”

Pray with me:

Lord, return America to her roots - to You. Give us the leader through this upcoming election who can help save us from our depravity, our stupidity, and our deception. Only You can save our nation; we know this. But leaders matter - give us the one You can most use. We ask in Yeshua’s name, Amen.

Our decree:

By the mercy of God, America shall be saved!

Click on the link below to watch the full video.

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1. https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/farewell-address-the-nation