This month, we are celebrating the 250^th anniversary of our country. Parties are happening in our capital and in backyards all across our country. We are demonstrating our pride with fireworks, colorful new t shirts and speeches reiterating our freedoms. They are all great expressions of a people who cherish their liberties.

So naturally I got to thinking about those men who signed the Declaration of Independence. Although there are great debates about exactly when those 56 men penned their names to that foundational document, it is clear that they pledged their lives, fortunes and sacred honor to the cause of freedom.

The youngest signer was Edward Rutledge from South Carolina. He was 26 when he affixed his name to the engrossed parchment. Ben Franklin was the oldest (70 years old). The smallest signature was from Button Gwinnett (a rep from Georgia). And interestingly, 8 of the signers were not born in the U.S. They were from Wales, Scotland, Ireland and England.

Among that specific group is John Witherspoon, who represented New Jersey. Although he was the only active clergyman to sign, the framers’ ideas were deeply influenced by the scriptures. In fact, King George once remarked that the American Revolution was a “black robed” rebellion. He was referring to the black clerical robes that were worn by colonial pastors. He knew that the church greatly influenced the thinking of the day.

In fact, Professor Donald Lutz (in The Origins of American Constitutionalism), remarked that “the Bible was the single greatest source for the ideas and ideals that gave rise to the American Republic.”

So, this month, as you and your family hum the words to Yankee Doodle Dandy and spin around with sparklers in your hands, pause a bit and give God some extra glory. Thank Him for His grace. Take some time to list your blessings. As the old hymn says, name them one by one.

We live in a nation that was indeed founded on some amazing principles, and their roots are found in the Bible we hold dear. For sure, we are a blemished people; but we are also a blessed people.

I think those men in 1776 understood the influence His Word had on their thinking. Some 250 years later, let’s make sure we still do!