O Beautiful for Spacious Skies

Whenever I go to Disney I always go to the Hall of Presidents. I know I have already seen it before. It's like singing Silent Night on Christmas Eve. It never fails to inspire me. Every time I am reminded of the sacrifice and virtues of our leaders. Many years ago I decided that regardless of who was the President or how I felt about the person serving as President, I would not make jokes about the President or the Presidential office.

I respect the office. I respect the sacrifice those who lead make. No matter who serves as president the person is criticized and mocked. A biographer in his book about George Washington talked about how even this man who was beloved by his country for his leader-ship in the Revolutionary War endured harassment and ridicule from others.

In the "Hall of Presidents" George Washington talks about his fears. We hear visionary statements from Presidents who faced challenging times leading our country and they did some unpopular things because they were the right things to do for our country in the long run. Sometimes we get so caught up in today that we are not mindful of the long run.

I also appreciate it when Washington talks about uniting the country – working together - One nation under God. We celebrate Independence Day and realize that our freedom has come at a great price. We are free to worship God and of course we are also free not to wor-ship. Sadly we take for granted this particular gift. There are many through the years who endured extraordinary persecution because of their faith.

As we celebrate the birth of our nation, I hope we will love it. I pray we will love it enough to speak for justice and work for peace. I pray we will love it enough that we will share our hope, our faith and our love with all we meet. How do we make our world better—one act of kindness at a time, one act of love at a time. Because of our faith we believe we can make our country and our world better as we seek to live a life reflective of Christ's love and mercy.gregation. I love you all!

Shalom, Cindy    

Happy 50th Anniversary BACC