I hope you are having a great celebration of our nation’s independence! Happy July 4th!

We are all familiar with the concept of “The American Dream.” The phrase was made popular by James Truslow Adams in his 1931 book The Epic of America. In that book he stated that the American dream is “that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement . . . It is not a dream of motor cars and high wages merely, but a dream of social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others for what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position.” What a great and noble dream! As we celebrate our nation’s independence this week we must ask the question if the American Dream still exists?

When you consider the founding documents of our country, The Declaration of Independence and The Constitution of the United States, there is no question that the hope we held as a nation was rooted in the belief that all blessings came from God. I would present that the further our country moves away from belief in the God of the Bible the less dreaming happens in our country. Dreams can’t be divorced from hope, and where a society places its hopes will determine what kind of dreaming happens. If hope is not placed in God, how can we have dreams and aspirations that reflect the righteousness of God? Join me this Sunday as we consider How America Can Dream Again.