Independence Day, The Fourth of July, A day in the midst of summer vacation with picnics, bake sales, fireworks, parades with marching bands, squirt gun and water balloon fights, baseball games and barbeques. A day we spend with family and friends and build fond memories. A day that children rank right up there with Christmas. A time of Summer Vacations, first kisses, carnivals and pie eating contests.
All of that makes it a special and memorable day of glee, free of the cares of the world and all about letting our hair down and having fun. Here in 2017 though, we seldom remember what it is REALLY about. Independence Day is when we celebrate the signing of The Declaration of Independence, that set in motion the birth of the Greatest Nation in human history; The United States of America.
The Declaration of Independence, The Bill of Rights and the Constitution were God-inspired documents written at a time when Godly people who boldly forged out a new civilization in the wilds of a new world and gained a foothold on an untamed land through hard work and great sacrifice, faced oppression from a government detached and unconcerned about the welfare of the very people who risked everything to make a better life for themselves, their families and future generations.
The King of England at the time, fondly referred to as “Mad King George III”, decided that America belonged to him and he desired to control his subjects and benefit from their toil with nothing for them in return. He would send his minions, the enlisted who donned Red Coats, to lord over the citizens of the 13 colonies, cruel men who would routinely bust into innocent people’s homes and ransack their properties, taking what they pleased, and beating or even murdering those who put up resistance. The conditions were severe and the colonials were wearied from the treatment they received, without a voice in government representing them and their interests.
Then came the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back; The king instituted a 3% tax on tea. Enough was enough and the Colonials, led by George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, James Madison, Benjamin Franklin and others had had enough. They revolted.
One night in Boston…..Click to read the rest.
