The History of America

The history of America is a story that is filled with constant reminders of the blessings of God upon our nation. The greatest of those blessings is the freedom that has been established, preserved, defended, advanced and shared by every American generation. Those who have gone before us have truly set the bar high - the ideals of equality, liberty and justice for all were truly radical when they were proposed over 200 years ago and they are still truly revolutionary.
Paul wrote 2,000 years ago, inspired by the Holy Spirit and told mankind that freedom, true freedom - eternal freedom from sin and judgment come through the person and power of Jesus Christ: "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free." (Gal. 5:1) God has, in his sovereign choice, established America, as pilgrim John Winthrop prophesied, as a city upon a hill, the light of which would illuminate the world and serve as a witness of the power of Christ to a watching world.
Lincoln described her as "the last, best hope of earth," and so she remains. The world still looks to the shining light held by lady liberty and that wonderful lady still extends her hand to all those who yearn to breathe free. It is the goal of this class this year to learn of her history through the eyes and stories of her defending heroes. Those heroes have ever been with us - in fact, they stand shoulder to shoulder, in a continuous line from the streets of Baghdad all the way back to the gangplank of the Mayflower. As we look at them, through eyes of gratitude and a veil of thankful tears, my prayer is that you will stand in awe and give thanks to God for the heritage of heroes that is ours. We must never forget them.

Week 1 Homework

Buy 2 spiral notebooks
Mark one "Class Notes"
Mark on HW/Reading Diary
Bring these to class each week
Read at least 30 pages from your book each week. In the HW/Reading Diary, record the pages read, title of the book you are reading and a brief summary of the content of what you read - important people, events, ideas, etc) Each time you finish 30 pages, do the same. Some books contain content on warfare, torture, and mistreatment of soldiers that is intense. Truth in history is often very hard to read and learn - it reminds us of man's sin and brutality, but if we are truly to appreciate the courage of those who overcame and defeated such evil, we have to learn of it. War is truly a terrible thing. The famous general Robert E. Lee once looked out on a field of battle, filled with bodies of enemy dead and wounded and said, "It is good that war is so terrible, or we would grow too fond of it."
Also for HW this week, go to the site below and click on "facts about Abraham Lincoln" article and read. In one column list the facts you already knew. In another column, write down the facts you did not know. What 3 facts do you find most interesting - list them
HAVE FUN !!

http://www.alincoln-library.com/