Happy 250th Birthday, America!

The Sacred Gift of Freedom

Thursday, July 2, 2026

This year, America marks the 250th anniversary of her birth—a remarkable milestone in the life of a nation. Two and a half centuries have passed since the Declaration of Independence announced to the world that liberty was not a privilege granted by kings, parliaments, or governments, but a right endowed by our Creator.

Those words still stir the soul: “endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights.” At the heart of America’s founding was the bold conviction that freedom is not man-made. It is God-given. Government does not create our liberty; it is called to protect it. No ruler grants human dignity; the Lord Himself has placed His image upon every person. And no earthly power has the rightful authority to extinguish what God has bestowed.

That is why freedom is sacred.

But sacred gifts must be guarded. We have learned across 250 years that freedom is never automatic, never guaranteed, and never permanently secured by one generation for the next. It must be taught around dinner tables, honored in classrooms, protected in courthouses, defended on battlefields, and lived out in the daily character of a grateful people.

Freedom is not free. It has been paid for in blood, sacrifice, prayer, hardship, and tears. It was paid for by farmers who became soldiers, by mothers who watched sons march away, by families who received folded flags, and by ordinary Americans who believed the cause of liberty was worth the cost. From Lexington and Concord to the beaches of Normandy, from frozen camps and distant fields to quiet cemetery rows in small towns across this land, the story of America has been written by those who loved freedom enough to suffer for it.

We must remember them.

A nation that forgets will eventually forfeit. When we forget the God who grants liberty, we begin to believe freedom is ours to redefine. When we forget the cost paid by those before us, we begin to treat freedom as common. When we forget our history, we become vulnerable to every lie that promises comfort in exchange for control.

"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same" President Ronald Reagan

Freedom is always in danger. It is threatened by enemies abroad, but also by apathy at home. It is weakened when truth is replaced by convenience, when gratitude gives way to entitlement, when virtue is mocked, when faith is pushed aside, and when a people become too distracted to remember what has been entrusted to them.

President Ronald Reagan warned that freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. It must be defended by every generation. That means ours.

The 250th anniversary of America should be more than a celebration; it should be a consecration of purpose. It should call us back to gratitude, back to truth, back to remembrance, back to courage, and back to the God whose providence has guided this nation through war, failure, repentance, renewal, and hope.

America is not perfect. No nation made of fallen people can be. But America’s founding promise remains noble, and her highest ideals remain worth preserving. Liberty under God. Justice for all. The dignity of every life. The right to worship freely. The responsibility to govern ourselves with virtue, humility, and courage.

So let the fireworks remind us of sacrifice. Let the flags remind us of duty. Let the songs remind us of unity. Let the graves remind us of cost. And let this anniversary remind us that freedom is not merely an American inheritance; it is a sacred trust.

May we receive it with gratitude. May we nourish it with truth. May we preserve it with courage. And may we do whatever it takes to protect the gift of freedom that Almighty God, in His mercy and providence, has bestowed upon this nation.

Have a safe and blessed 4th of July. God Bless America!

Jim Pannell, Managing Principal

(The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual.  All performance referenced is historical and is no guarantee of future results.  All indices are unmanaged and may not be invested into directly.)