A nation lives through the hearts of its people. America is an ideal as much, if not more, than a nationality. The American ideal traditionally has been to live free and do no harm to others. In that ideal, we become Americans by assimilating to the values of our nation; freedom, equality, respect for others, for the rule of law.

Founded in the principle that we do unto others as we would have them do unto us, we have the freedom to own land, to enterprise with our skills and dreams, to worship how we see fit, and, as Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes 3:13, to “enjoy the good of all his labor, it is the gift of God.” This is America. If you hold to these principles, you are an American. It’s an ideal that lives in your heart.

Lately, especially in the last nine years, the American ideal has come under tremendous threat. There are people in gangs like Antifa, the news media, and even elected politicians who do not ascribe to the American ideal.

In fact, they want to tear down everything that is American, and as the immediate past “president” put it, “Remake America.” It is in their hearts to oppose everything that is American; its history, its capitalism, its religious foundations, its family units, its natural affections for those who are countrymen. This spirit that lives in these people is a rebellious one. The heart of these is as described in Jeremiah 17:9, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it.”

There are those, however, who still embody the heart and spirit of America. They believe

in freedom. They abide by the laws. They respect others. They stand for what is right according to a godly standard. They are willing to speak up and take action when there is injustice.

They hold dear to the creed that all men are created equal and have the God-given right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. They have a love for family. They are loyal. They are trustworthy. They are not afraid of a fight, but seek peace first. In short they are a King David type of people, to whom God may testify as conveyed in Acts 13:22, “I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfill all my will.”

One way or another, if you are reading this, you are the heart of our nation. Whether you are a God-fearing American, one who understands that the American ideal and values also flow from the heart of God who created all things and called them good, or if you are a rebellious spirit having a wicked heart living in America, there is before you a choice of good or evil, of life or of death. The American ideal is goodness and life that shows loving-kindness and civility, but is not afraid to stand strong against unrighteousness.

It’s all about the heart. Let us pray a Psalm 51:10 prayer for all our countrymen that the Lord create in them, in all of us, “A clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within” us.

Have a Blessed and powerful day!

Bill Wilson

www.dailyjot.com

Ever wonder why you have less money to spend? That it seems like every time you go to the grocery store, you get a whole lot less for a whole lot more? Part of the reason is inflation. The way the government accounts for inflation these days kind of fudges the numbers; and gasoline don’t count in the same figures anymore.

Convenient right? But on the other side of the equation, it may seem like you’re paying more for essentials because you don’t have as much available cash to spend. According to this week’s report by the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, you are paying more in taxes than you are for food. In fact, since 2013, you have seen an average increase of 41.13% in taxes.

The report talks about spending in terms of “consumer units,” which means families. The average American ‘food expenditures increased by $601 from $6,602 in 2013 to $7,203 in 2016. Food expenditures were about 14% of the average American’s income. The BLS’s Average Annual Expenditures for American Consumer Units report indicates that the average American family paid $7,432 in taxes in 2013 compared with taxes of $10,489 in 2016, an increase of $3,057 or 41.13%.

It is no wonder why most of us are feeling “pinched” because we are actually in a tax vice that is squeezing tighter each year. The government has become a leviathan that wields tremendous and absolute power over the people.

In March 1765, the British Parliament passed the Stamp Act, a tax to be levied on documents from legal papers to newspapers to playing cards, ranging from a penny to about a dollar depending on the number of pages. By November 1, 1765, the day the Stamp Act was to officially go into effect, PBS says: “There was not a single stamp commissioner left in the colonies to collect the tax.”

They were tarred and feathered and ran out of town. This unfair taxation of a penny a penny, gave impetus to the American Revolution. The Founders believed that the government was not to intrude into people’s lives beyond providing safety and security—the true meaning of providing for the general welfare—for the people.

There are certain biblical principles being violated by such taxation. First and foremost, Exodus 20:3 says, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” Government is not God. In America, we have a choice in how we are governed. We can vote. Government should never be allowed to stand with the life or death power of a god-either over our ability to have food or in our health care decisions.

Exodus 20:17 says, “Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbor’s.”

Exodus 20:15 says, “Thou shalt not steal.”

A 41% increase in taxes over four years seems a lot like coveting and stealing to me.

Have a Blessed and Powerful Day!

Bill Wilson

www.dailyjot.com