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wisdom and might? Or were these
overflowing blessings given by a
Higher Power for a great purpose?
President Lincoln's
Proclama–
tion
of April 30, 1863, during the
tragic American Civil War, reveals
the answer to these questions: "It is
the duty of nations, as well as of
men, to owe their dependence upon
truth, announced in the Holy
Scriptures and proveo by all his–
tory, that those nations only are
blessed whose God is the Lord....
We have been the recipients of the
choicest bfessing of heaven,"
said
Mr. Lincoln. "We have been pre–
served, these many years, in peace
and prosperity. We have grown in
numbers, weafth
and
power
as no
other nation ever has grown; but
we
have forgotten God."
And, in his Thanksgiving
Procfa–
mation
of October 3, 1863, Presi–
dent Lincoln said: "No human coun–
sel hath devised, nor hath any mortal
hand worked out these great things.
They are the gracious gifts of the
most high God.... "
Mr. Lincoln, who had for years
diligently studied the Bible, knew
the real source of America's wealth.
A Warning for Today
Nearly 3,000 years ago, a wise
national leader-Moses was his
name- foresaw our day. He fore–
saw that the descendants of the
ancient nation of Israel, like all
nations, would soon forget the true
source of their blessings. In his
warning, he foretold that the
ancient people of Israel were des–
tined to inherit "goodly cit–
ies .. . and houses full of all good
things . . . wells . . . vineyards and
olive trees.... When thou shalt
have eaten and be full [as on
Thanksgiving Day] ; then
beware,"
said Mases,
"test thou forget the
Lord
... " (Deut. 6:10-12, Autho–
rized Version).
Moses' description of ancient
Israel's national blessings is a pro–
phetic description of what is hap–
pening to the modern-day peoples
of the United States and Canada:
"For the Lord your God," said
Mases, "is bringing you into a good
l$1nd, a land of brooks of water, of
fountains and springs, that ftow out
of valleys and hills; a land of wheat
and barley, of vines and fig trees
and pomegranates, a land of olive
November/ Oecember 1984
oil and honey; a land in which you
will eat bread without scarcity, in
which you will lack nothing; a land
whose stones are iron and out of
whose bilis you can dig copper.
When you have eaten and are full,
then you shall bless the Lord your
God for the good land wbich He
has given you" (Deut. 8:7-10,
Revised Authorized Version).
Then God also inspired Moses to
add this solemn warning: "Beware
that you do not forget the Lord your
God by not keeping His command–
ments, His judgments, and His stat–
utes which I command you today,
lest-when you bave eaten and are
full, and have built beautiful bouses
and dwell in them; and when your
herds and your ftocks multiply, and
your silver and your gold are multi–
plied, and all that you have is multi–
plied; when your heart is lifted up,
and you forget the Lord your
God ... you say in your heart, 'My
power and the might of my hand
have gained me this wealth.' And
you shall remember the Lord your
God, for it is He who gives you
power to get wealth.... Then it
shall be, if you by any means forget
the Lord your God, and follow otber
gods ... you shall surely per-
ish.... because you would not be
obedient to the voice of the Lord
your God" (Deut. 8:11-20).
As a whole, the peoples of Anglo
North America have been blessed
with the highest standard of living of
any people in the entire bistory of
mankind. But we need to bear in
mind an important principie that the
founder of true Christianity de–
clared: "For unto whomsoever mucb
is given, of him shall be much
required" (Luke 12:48, Authorized
Version).
President Calvin Coolidge once
gave similar advice: "Prosperity is
only an instrument to be used, not a
deity to be worshipped." He added:
"No person was ever honored for
what he received. Honor has been
the reward for what he gave."
True, the great "have nations"
unselfishly helped the needy after
World War 11. But have we in
North America and elsewhere done
all we should have done? Did we do
it altogether unselfishly?
(lt
should
be clearly understood that when
food is freely given care should be
taken to see that, firstly, it reaches
the truly needy, not the indolent;
and, secondly, that it reaches those
for wbom it is intended, instead of
being siphoned off by the greedy,
to further enrich themselves.)
Now look at how we have treated
our own national inheritances.
No matter where we live, we
find pollution of food, water, soil
and the very air we breathe. But
the worst pollution of all is
mind
poffution.
Vast areas of the world
are fed a constant stream of vio–
lence, illicit sex and sensationalism
by way of television and other
media emanating from the United
States of America. Newsstands are
loaded with pornographic material.
Homes by the thousands break up
each week in divorce. And modero
societies murder (abort) millions of
unborn infants each year!
There are the twin scourges of
drug abuse (with millions destroy–
ing their minds through ever–
increasing drug addiction) and
drunkenness. Millions die prema–
turely, victims of heart and artery
disease, cancer, stroke and acci–
dents. Is this the legacy that Amer–
ica will be remembered for around
the world? Why is God allowing
these penalties to befall especially
the nations most blessed with natu–
ral resources? There is a reason!
To our American readers cele–
brating Thanksgiving Day we say,
listen to the admonitions of your
past great leaders. George Wash–
ington once referred to religion and
morality as the "indispensable sup–
ports" of the new nation. He spoke
of religion and morality as "these
great pillars of human happiness,
these firmest props of the duties of
meo and citizens."
The insistent words of President
Theodore Roosevelt also come to
mind: "The things that will destroy
America are prosperity-at-any–
price, peace-at-any-price, safety–
first instead of duty-first, the love
of soft living, and the get-rich–
quick theory of life."
Do we give thanks by sharing our
blessings with those near and far who
are less fortunate than we?
Do we give heartfelt thanks to our
Creator-the Almighty Blesser
"who daily loads us with benefits"
(Ps. 68:19, RAV)-for the manifold
blessings he has so abundantly
bestowed upon our nations? o
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