The United States of America is the land of opportunity and opportunity is tied to the freedoms Americans enjoy. As you extend gratitude this Thanksgiving to those that have played an important role in your life, remember the founding fathers that secured the “certain unalienable rights, … Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.”
Of course the reason we have family gatherings at Thanksgiving is because family plays such a key role in ...read on
In freedom we stand in these United States of America. Or do we? The Declaration of Independence states that “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.” The first amendment to the Constitution guarantees the freedom to exercise religion, the freedom of speech or of the press and the right to peaceably assemble. These freedoms were unheard of anywhere else in the world when they were ratified as part of the “Bill of Rights” in 1791.
It’s easy. At least that is what John Lennon wrote and the Beatles sang in 1967 – “All you need is love, love, love is all you need. There’s nothing you can know that isn’t known. Nothing you can see that isn’t shown. Nowhere you can be that isn’t where you’re meant to be. It’s easy.” John Lennon said the lyrics were deliberately simplistic to capture the utopian ideals of the ‘Summer of Love’.
What is the point? Several years ago, I called a friend and caught him at the hospital undergoing a round of chemotherapy. I asked him how he was doing and he said, “Well, now I know why I got the cancer. My nurse doesn’t know Jesus and the Lord has me here to talk with her.” He was on point. This was the theme folks shared throughout Jesse’s funeral service recently – a lifelong commitment of sharing the love of Jesus with family, friends and strangers. His battle with liver cancer these last five years was simply another platform for him to share the love of Christ in a powerful way.
The United States of America is the land of opportunity and opportunity is tied to the freedoms Americans enjoy. As you extend gratitude this Thanksgiving to those that have played an important role in your life, remember the founding fathers that secured the “certain unalienable rights, … Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.” 
In freedom we stand in these United States of America. Or do we? The Declaration of Independence states that “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.” The first amendment to the Constitution guarantees the freedom to exercise religion, the freedom of speech or of the press and the right to peaceably assemble. These freedoms were unheard of anywhere else in the world when they were ratified as part of the “Bill of Rights” in 1791.
It’s easy. At least that is what John Lennon wrote and the Beatles sang in 1967 – “All you need is love, love, love is all you need. There’s nothing you can know that isn’t known. Nothing you can see that isn’t shown. Nowhere you can be that isn’t where you’re meant to be. It’s easy.” John Lennon said the lyrics were deliberately simplistic to capture the utopian ideals of the ‘Summer of Love’.
What is the point? Several years ago, I called a friend and caught him at the hospital undergoing a round of chemotherapy. I asked him how he was doing and he said, “Well, now I know why I got the cancer. My nurse doesn’t know Jesus and the Lord has me here to talk with her.” He was on point. This was the theme folks shared throughout Jesse’s funeral service recently – a lifelong commitment of sharing the love of Jesus with family, friends and strangers. His battle with liver cancer these last five years was simply another platform for him to share the love of Christ in a powerful way.
