Please, Be a Patriot

250 years of freedom, dismantling historical lies, and our calling to love what is both good and great

On September 13th, 1814, a young man stood in the dark hull of a British ship. Sick with fear and praying his heart out, he stared for hours at a dark and lonely shoreline. His only light came from the explosion of bombs, an angry scarlet against the rainy night. The very thing that was destroying the land that he loved.

The British army had begun what would become a twenty-five hour attack on Fort McHenry. The War of 1812 had been on for two years now, and things were not looking good for the young United States. Mere weeks before, The White House had been burned to the ground. DC was in shambles. The president and his wife had been forced to flee the city. It seemed that the idealistic democratic republic, the nation the world had said could not be maintained, would not stand much longer.

Everyone knew that it would be all but impossible to survive the night.

And for young Francis Scott Key, the thought was unbearable.

Let’s Talk About the World Cup

I’ll finish the story at the end of the post. First, let’s take a quick moment to talk about the World Cup.

Anyone who knows anything about American sports knows that we are not on par with the rest of the world when it comes to soccer.

But this year, we’re the primary hosts of the FIFA World Cup—and what’s more, this FIFA we have one of the best USA National teams we’ve ever had.

People from all over the world are coming to the United States (particularly my home state and America’s Soccer Capital, Kansas City, Kansas) to fill gigantic stadiums to watch some of the most competitive games on the world stage.

And as fun as it’s been to see America caught up in FIFA fever, what’s been even more fun (and what has caused just as much of a stir) has been Americans seeing firsthand how the rest of the world has come to see them: as the greatest country on earth.

Americans are seeing their own country for what it is.

And contrary to popular political opinion…it’s good.

Let’s Talk About 250 Years

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.”

Tomorrow will mark the two-hundred and fifty year anniversary of when the Declaration of Independence was signed.

It’s the day where fifty-six men wrote away their lives, risking their very existence for a cause no one but them believed could ever succeed.

According to historical record, some went as far as to talk about the day they might be hanged, showing just how much they knew they were placing on the line.

American history is full of countless other stories like this. Stories of incredible bravery, sacrifice, and, quite frankly, miracles of prevailing against all the odds.

America has raised heroes such as George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Paul Revere, Ronald Reagan, Davy Crocket, Daniel Boone, Clara Barton, John Adams, Andrew Carnegie, Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Benjamin Franklin, Ulysses S. Grant, Patrick Henry, Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, MLK, James Madison, Harriet Tubman, Jonathan Edwards, Frederick Douglas, and countless others, too many to ever name and too many to even ever know.

They were dreamers, artists, madmen, geniuses, preachers, politicians, and they were patriots.

“The British are coming!”

Many things throughout America’s history have characterized it as unique from the rest of the world. But one thing in particularly has made it stand out, and that is its patriotism.

We have long been a nation that was proud to exist. Proud of our past. Proud of our accomplishments.

But all of that is being threatened now.

We’ve swallowed the great lie that there is some kind of national guilt and historical debt we must carry around on our shoulders. A debt that keeps us from loving our country.

Let’s Talk About Some Lies You (Probably) Believe and (Definitely) Have Heard

“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. It has to be fought for and defended by each generation.”

-Ronald Regan

Today it’s pretty popular to think America sucks.

I bought into this narrative at one point in my life. There was a time when I felt like I shouldn’t feel proud or excited during the Fourth of July because our nation just wasn’t cool anymore. I had heard the PBS documentaries that degraded acts of courage and men of character by “exposing” their motivations to be purely selfish and hypocritical. I had heard the story told over and over again on our television screens that it was all an idealistic lie, too good to be true—instead focusing on the “dark underside” behind the stories we know so well.

For whatever reason, our modern expectation is that if our heroes were imperfect people and our history had mistakes, it is not worth remembering or respecting.

And the thing is, things could always be better. But what we’ve lost sight of is that here, things are better than good. Things are great. That’s part of why the FIFA phenomenon has shocked so many Americans; they’re finally remembering that America is the best place on earth to live.

We’ve been fed a narrative by the cynics and the critics. A narrative that is potent, because parts of it are true. But only parts.

Facts have been twisted, pulled out of context, and rephrased to make us believe that our nation is nothing special, nothing great, and nothing good.

It’s not true.

We should be able to clearly see what went wrong in our country while still celebrating our glorious and noble past.

Because it was glorious. And it was noble.

Hating On Your Country Isn’t Cool or Helpful, Actually

Many people will make you feel that your duty as an American is to feel guilty.

They want you to focus on the fact that America had slavery…instead of the fact that we were the first nation in history to risk our very existence to abolish it.

That in and of itself is something to be remembered and celebrated as an incredible accomplishment of moral fortitude.

And the slavery issue is just one of a slew of things that are constantly being shoved down the patriot’s throat.

The real story of American history is not only of our failings; it’s a story of firsts, of mistakes, of getting back up again, of fighting with conviction, of sacrifice, and of giving your all for something important and meaningful.

You Are Called To Be More: A Patriot

America is great because it is good. When it ceases to be good, it will cease to be great.

-Alexis DeTocqueville

America is not a perfect country.

It was never meant to be a perfect country.

It never could have been a perfect country.

It never will be a perfect country.

There is no perfect country and there never will be one.

America is worth loving.

America is worth being proud of.

It’s time we were able to love it without dragging 250 years of unnecessary national guilt along behind us, because that’s what America deserves.

Those mistakes are in our past, and there is so much more to be proud of.

So be a patriot this weekend. And the week after that, and the week after that.

Let’s get to work on making sure that America is good and great for the next 250 years.

The Star Spangled Banner

The hellish night of battle was drawing to a close as morning dawned over Fort McHenry.

Francis Scott Key strained his eyes through the early morning light. He knew that if the flag had fallen, all would be lost.

But as the sun rose, he saw on the horizon that the flag over Fort McHenry still stood.

Against all odds, by God’s grace, it was flying proud.

Full of wonder and gratitude, Francis sat down and began to write.

O say can you see, by the dawn's early light
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming
Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight
O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming?
And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there;
O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

Do you have any exciting plans for this Independence Day weekend?

I hope you do—you should!

If you’re looking to add to the epic celebration, take your friends and family to see Angel Studio’s “Young Washington” in theaters.

No spin, no agenda, no cynicism—just history and patriotism as we celebrate 250 years of freedom and honor the man who made America what it is today.

Help Angel hit their goal of ONE MILLION weekend attendees and witness the never before told story of George Washington in theaters.