We the People....

I was reading over the Preamble to the Constitution today, as I tend to do on the 4th of July. Now I admit, I'm one of those kids who gets real worked up over how important citizenship is and I can rant from hours on the connections between civic virtues and religious ones, but today the words really struck me.

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

I think of how divided the country (and even my own life) can feel. And yet here at its core, what so many people have bled for and wept over, are simple powerful ideas of justice and peaceful country where the well being of others is lifted up and the gift of freedom is celebrated.

How often as people do we define ourselves as what we are not? How often do we point a finger, wrap ourselves in a flag (or and ideology) and scream at another claiming we are right and the only ones who deserve to claim this country for our own. I feel like I am constantly allowing myself to be polarized and pushed away from my neighbors.

"a more perfect Union" - There's so much power and promise for who we can become as a nation, who we must always continue to struggle to become. As a Christian, the themes of the Gospel echo in my ears as I read the Preamble, begging me to "let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream."

So today, I hope, like me, you'll think about the treasure we could have in the real American dream - the one that so many of our brothers and sisters are continually struggling for today. Not of excessive wealth, cheaper gas, or name brand shoes, but of safe and clean neighborhoods, fair and honest wages, and the blessings of Liberty - the ability to live their lives and raise their voices without fear.

Happy 4th and God bless the United States of America as He continues to bless the World...