Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance. - Psalm 33:12
The fact remains that 50 years ago on July 10, 1973, we broke away from the ties that bound us to our colonial masters and became an independent nation, with Lynden Oscar Pindling becoming our first prime minister. For those old enough to have experienced the before and after to the point of 50 where time has brought us, we can all sing praises with Martin Rinkart's hymn of adoration and thanksgiving, "Now Thank We All Our God" which goes, "With heart and hands and voices, who wondrous things has done, in whom his world rejoices; who from our mothers' arms has blessed us on our way with countless gifts of love, and still is ours today."
There are complaints, but not to the tune of the advancements we have made for the betterment of our nation and its people. One song of yesterday says that starting all over again is going to be rough but good news is we will make it. The historic independence sermon preached by the late Rev. Dr. Reuben Edward Cooper Sr. assured that independence through God will work in spite of the naysayers.
Psalm 33 opens with rejoicing and high praise aided with musical instruments for what the word of the Lord hath done in the lives of his people and all creation. The word of the Lord is right, his works bear the hallmark of truth. He loves righteousness and judgment and brings the counsel of the heathen to naught and the evil devices of the people to fail.
The good news for our time is in our text, "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance."
Look all around you and the world and determine for yourselves if we have been truly blessed these past 50 years.
Leaders set the pace for the people to follow - as the leader, so goes the nation. In April of 1935, 19 business executives in Seattle, Washington, met to face a critical situation in the life of their city. Looking for ways to deal with the tensions and fractures that often accompany public life, they turned to the 2,000-plus-year-old story of Jesus of Nazareth, at a meal.
Over the months and years that followed, this small group grew into many States having breakfast meetings. When President Dwight Eisenhower came to office, the National Prayer Breakfast was formed with 160 nations attending. People are finding understanding, confidence, and hope for the future through a deepening relationship with Jesus and in discovering the secret of true brotherhood with their fellowmen.
Here are some thoughts from the forefathers of America as it relates to the people who have God as their god.
George Washington: It is impossible to account for the creation of the universe without the agency of a supreme being. Fear not neither be thou dismayed and sublime which have ever been preached to man, I adhere to the principles of the first age.
Abraham Lincoln: Being a humble instrument in the hand of our Heavenly Father, I desire that all my words and acts may be according to his will and that it may be so. I give thanks to the almighty, and seek his aid.
Theodore Roosevelt: Almost every man who has by his life work added to the sum of human achievement of which the race is proud, almost every such man had based his work largely upon the teachings of the Bible.
John F. Kennedy: No man who enters upon the office in which I have succeeded can fail to recognize how every president of the United States has placed special reliance upon his faith in God. Every president has taken comfort and courage when told, as we are told today, that the Lord will be with thee. He will not fail thee nor forsake thee.
Let us go forth to lead this land that we love, joining in the prayer of General George Washington in 1783, that God would have you in his holy protection, that he would incline the hearts of the citizens to entertain a brotherly love and affection one for another finally, that he would most graciously be pleased to dispose as all to do justice, to love mercy.
As The Commonwealth of The Bahamas and the United States of America celebrate independence within days of each other, let us continue to pray to God that our nations would hold fast to the faith of our forefather and no weapon formed against us will prosper.
• E-mail haystreet241@gmail.com or rubyanndarling@yahoo.com. Write to P.O. Box, 19725 SS Nassau, Bahamas, with your prayer requests, concerns and comments. God's blessings.
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