In our modern digital age with 24/7 news and endless social media feeds full of complaints and dooms-day predictions, Thanksgiving offers a welcome break from the cloud of negativity. Today, Must Read Alaska takes a break from hunting down news stories, and instead reflects on the blessings we enjoy as Alaskans, as Americans, and as Christians.
Thank God for Alaska!
We Alaskans have a particular pride in our state, as we should. Alaska is vast, beautiful, and full of natural resources. The Alaskan wilderness provides a freedom unknown to many and excites a strong pioneer spirit.
The Alaska Constitution begins with an expression of gratitude. The Preamble reads: “We the people of Alaska, grateful to God and to those who founded our nation and pioneered this great land, in order to secure and transmit to succeeding generations our heritage of political, civil, and religious liberty within the Union of States, do ordain and establish this constitution for the State of Alaska.”
While story after story can be written about the corruption in Anchorage or the political graft in Juneau, today we focus on what is beautiful. What do you appreciate about Alaska? Let us know in the comments.
Thank God for America!
The greatness of America lies in its founding principles. Our nation’s dearest principles are stated in the Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, 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. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed…”
We live in a nation that values life, liberty, and equality under the law. We live in a nation where citizens can engage politically, speak their minds, and hold government accountable. Such a blessing comes with immense responsibility, and we must continue to work hard to ensure America’s principles are more than mere ink on paper, that they are a lived reality.
Although plenty of examples may be given of troubling erosion of our founding principles, the grim greed of government, and the trampling of rights, today we focus on what is good. Today, we echo Irving Berlin’s famous lyrics:
God bless America, land that I love
Stand beside her and guide her
Through the night with a light from above
From the mountains to the prairies
To the oceans white with foam
God bless America, my home sweet home
Thank God for the Gospel!
Ultimately, no blessing exceeds that of salvation through Jesus Christ’s death and resurrection. Evidence of evil exists all around us. The pages of human history bear it like an ink blot, impossible to erase. However, the beauty and intricacy in the world around us testifies to the existence of God, the reality of an artist who crafted beauty and life out of nothing.
Christians proclaim the Good News that God loved the world, and so He sent his one and only son to bring salvation to mankind, whom He made in His image and redeemed once more to Himself.
Many Christian apologists have provided persuasive defenses of the Christian faith’s rationality. G. K. Chesterton’s Orthodoxy, C. S. Lewis’ Mere Christianity, and J Warner Wallace’s Cold-Case Christianity: A Homicide Detective Investigates the Claims of the Gospels were instrumental in my own faith journey. While these writings (and many others) explain the rationale backing Christianity, the core of the Gospel is not logic, it is love. According to 1 John 4:10, “This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”
The simple children’s song “Jesus Loves Me” captures the essence of the Good News. To be known and loved by a good God— what an infinite source of gratitude, joy, and hope!