Blessed is the Nation Part 1

“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord..” Psalms 33:12a

The American settlers that came on the Mayflower in 1620 had fled from tyranny and oppression. It was on that ship the Mayflower Compact was crafted stating their purpose with the reason for their journey to America. They had come to the new world,” for the glory of God and the advancement of the Christian faith.” These pilgrims were not seeking for gold or fame, rather for the freedom to serve and build the Kingdom of God.

According to history, the first public building erected was the church and the first public corporate act was praise and worship to God who had brought them to fulfill His purpose for them, to guide them, and keep them.

Time passed, in fact 150 years, and with that time the original settlers had died, their descendant became more interested in wealth and comfort. More and more immigrants arrived with different motives than the original founding fathers and by 1730, according to Melvin Newland, only about 10% of the Colonist attended church.

Then something very supernatural happened. It was called the First Great Awakening! It started in Europe and came to America. It happened in the 1730-40’s when a handful of preachers such as Jonathan Edwards, George Whitefield, Gilbert Tennant , the Wesley brothers and others preached the Word of God with great passion. These meetings gained great momentum with great crusades, revivals, street corners spreading through the 13 Colonies. Tens of thousand dedicated their lives to Jesus and were baptized. The move of the Spirit was primarily for those that were in the church to seek a personal relationship rather than a ritual with Jesus. It was significant because it was within this climate and timeline the founding fathers declared their independence, wrote the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights that established this nation. Of the “15,000 documents and speeches written during this time, 94% of the quotes were based upon the Bible,” according to the University of Houston after a 10-year study. It was a foundational piece to being a blessed nation as God was our Lord.

Pastor Ruth Kaunley