There is one book that I intentionally read every day – the Bible. It is a discipline I developed years ago as I was drawn to grow and deepen my Christian faith. For years my devotion time was relatively short and solitary. With time I went beyond just reading the verse or two in the devotion and began the practice of reading the entire chapter containing the suggested scripture. This not only provides more depth and context for the verses and message of the devotion, but the increased time spent reading scripture also tends to better focus my attention on the message that God may have for me that day. Many times, the lesson for me is not found in the devotional guide and verse, but elsewhere in the chapter.

That was the case for me today. The verse that the devotion focused on was Isaiah 9:6. This is an oft quoted scripture during the Christmas season because it is a prophecy of a child to be born that will establish an eternal kingdom from the line of David upholding justice and righteousness. The words of this prophecy were written about 700years before the birth of Jesus. The verse reads, “For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” The scripture foretells of the birth Jesus, and the verse after it tells of a time farther in the future when there will be everlasting peace. This message of good news is most often the verse that people like to zero in on within this chapter, as did the author of today’s devotion. But another powerful lesson caught my focus as I read on in the chapter past verses 6 and7.

The wonderful message inverses 6 and 7 is tempered by the rest of the chapter that provides a more immediate prophecy of Isaiah’s time when Israel would be destroyed because of the depravity and wickedness that had overtaken their nation. The entire society had turned from the righteousness of God. They had been led astray by arrogant leaders who spoke lies and folly. This is a fundamental message of the entire Bible. All the Old Testament is one sequence after another of God delivering his people only to have them fall away and worship other Gods. History beyond the Bible also teaches us that nations led astray away from their virtuous and righteous beginnings, by prideful and arrogant leaders, are stories that never end well. John the Baptist and Jesus himself both taught repent or parish, and Jesus’ ministries before his crucifixion, as well as his disciples afterward, focused on what repentance and living within God’s will looks like.

This brings me to the concerns I raise in my book, To Concerned Americans. I see parallels between our country today and times past in the history of nations that went astray from their founding principles, only to suffer dire consequences. In a few places in the book, I draw attention to lessons that are found in the Bible that we seem to have forgotten, or for some have never learned. The men who met to draft the US Constitution were mostly students of the Bible, and their knowledge of the lessons therein, as well as a broader knowledge and understanding of human history, helped guide their deliberations and wording of our founding document.

Many of the Founders of our nation emphasized the importance of a strong religious moral foundation in society as being necessary to the success and preservation of a free society. I write this article just a few days before Christmas. A quote by our 33^rdpresident, Harry S. Truman, comes to my mind that was part of a Christmas Eve address he delivered on December 24, 1945.

“From the manger of Bethlehem came a new appeal to the minds and hearts of men: ‘A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another.’ … In love, which is the very essence of the message of the Prince of Peace, the world would find a solution for all its ills. …  I do not believe there is one problem in this country or in the world today which could not be settled if approached through the teaching of the Sermon on the Mount ….”

As we enter a time of Christmas celebrations, I pray for God’s blessings of grace and love to bring healing to the hearts of citizens on all sides of the divisions that tear at the social fabric of our nation. I also lift in prayer each of you reading this devotion, that you may receive the peace of God in your heart, a peace that surpasses all understanding.