The following article represents my personal observation as a citizen of the United States who is deeply grateful to the men and women who have served our nation and protected our liberties.

This July 4 I find myself no longer reflecting on the greatness of America and her future, but bemoaning what she has become in the last decade. Whether by design or ineptness, President Obama and his administration has diminished our nation and eroded the foundational pillars of our society that made America the envy of the world. While swearing to uphold the Constitution of the United States, this president and his cohorts have systematically shredded the document with their left-wing, pragmatic ideology.

While the Executive branch of our government evidences the disposition of autocrats bent on killing the American spirit that loves liberty and aspires to the highest ideals of self-reliance, the Legislative branch has failed its constituency by not keeping the current administration in check. The Senate and House have betrayed the public’s trust and, in an hour of a Constitutional crisis, cower in their chambers and offices content with media sound bites and an occasional foray in front of the FOX news cameras.

America’s founding fathers, though not all proponents of the Christian faith, were strongly influenced by the teachings of the Word of God and the fundamental doctrines of the church. The founding documents of our nation and the writings of the signers of the Declaration of Independence offer irrefutable evidence that faith in Christ and the church were the womb from which American exceptionalism was born. The Christian faith, its doctrine and moral values were the underpinnings of America’s greatness; however, we have elected a generation of political leaders who have contempt for biblical morality and the result is that we have become a nation that has lost its way.

As you enjoy and celebrate America’s independence this July 4, I urge you to remember, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men.” (Lord John Acton)

P. S. Call me an old fogey or a hopeless romantic, but today’s TV Land schedule features an Andy Griffith Marathon I am recording and enjoying. Griffith’s portrayal of the south in the early 1960’s is an accurate portrayal of the innocence America has lost over the last half-century. Was our nation perfect? Absolutely not! The vestiges of her imperfections, especially racism, continue to be a scar that will not heal; however, I miss her innocence and the simpler times when families ate together, went to church and neighbors loved their neighbors.