What did you do with the liberty you were given?

 10 November 2023

Address to Burns Flat – Dill City Students

 

Three times a year, we pause to consider those who serve or have served in the armed forces of the United States of America.

Armed Forces Day recognizes those who are now serving. It is typically celebrated on the third Saturday in May.  It is good to take a moment to recognize those who serve now.

Memorial Day is observed to remember those who gave what President Abraham Lincoln would call the last full measure of devotion.  It’s for those who didn’t get to come home like the rest of us.  They came home under a flag-draped coffin.

Memorial Day reminds us to remember the cost of liberty is high.  Freedom is not free. The price for your freedom was paid in the blood of American Servicemen and women. There is no higher price.

To take your liberty for granted is to disrespect the mothers and fathers, husbands and wives who gave someone from their family for your freedom.

These are things that we don’t think of much for to dwell on them too long brings sadness when there should be celebration.  We should know the price paid for our liberty but celebrate it all the same that there were those willing to pay the price.

And now we come to Veteran’s Day.  It originated with the armistice that brought an end to WWI and was signed in 1918.  It took effect on the 11^th hour of the 11^th day of the 11^th month of that year.  Since that time, 11 November has been special for all veterans.

It’s easy to remember for me.  The Marine Corps birthday was 10 November 1775. The Marines take over the internet with all sorts of off-center and sometimes off-color posts that only mean something to those who have worn the Eagle, Globe, and Anchor, but on 11 November, all veterans get into the act.

Veterans Day is for all who serve and who have served. But just who is a veteran?

If you address the early morning hours as zero dark thirty, you might be a veteran.

If someone was about to disrespect your nation or your Corps or a family member and in one look, they started running for the hills, you might be a veteran.

If you have been told that your language is not politically correct, you might be a veteran.

If you don’t care that your language is not politically correct, you might be a veteran.

If your friends and family know not to put you on speakerphone, you might be a veteran.

If you have an entrenching tool in the garage or your storeroom, you might be a veteran, probably a grunt.

When passing a large open area, you automatically look overhead for power lines that could obstruct its use as a landing zone, you might be a veteran.

If you can make a sentence out of nothing but acronyms, you might be a veteran.

If you have busted your kids back to private at least once, you might be a veteran.

If you keep your valuable papers in an old ammo can, you might be a veteran.

If you think the words suck it up buttercup are appropriate for most counseling situations, you might be a veteran.

If you can’t make any sense out of the abbreviations on the New York Stock Exchange but know the trading value of everything in a C-Ration or MRE, you might be a veteran.

More like these…

Most of these were a little tongue-in-cheek.  It’s 2023, I have to add that disclaimer. People have to be told that you are being light-hearted or they might be offended.

If you don’t really care that your straightforward remarks might offend someone, you might be a veteran.

This one is not lighthearted.  If you have ever written a blank check to your country, you might be a veteran.

Some of you may serve in the armed forces one day.  Most won’t.  I think it’s about 3% who eventually serve.  It’s about 1% or less who become Marines.  Most don’t serve, but some will.

As today is the Marine Corps Birthday, I asked a question that only Marines can answer.  How long does it take for the average person to become a Marine?

The answer is that the average person will never become a Marine.  In fact, the average person will never become a veteran.  It is a calling reserved for only a few.  There may be a few of you who will answer that calling.

Some among us will continue to put their lives on the line for their country.  Some will. Few will, but there will be some.

For those who do—for those who will write that blank check, do you know who your boss will be?

Will it be your commanding officer? Some captain or colonel?

Will it be the Sergeant Major?

Will it be the President of the United States or the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs?

The answer is “No” and it does not matter the service.  Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Space Force, Coast Guard, active or reserve, you all serve the same boss. 

Who?

The Constitution of the United States of America.  Yes, that piece of paper from 234 years ago is your boss. That old document with 27 amendments is what you will be sworn to support and defend.

While the president may give you orders or the Sergeant Major will get your full attention; you are sworn to support and defend the Constitution of the United States of America.

Not a person…

Not a government…

Not a branch of service…

The Constitution of the United States of America!

Listen to an oath that I know well. 

I ___, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.

That’s the oath for officers.  The enlisted oath is like it, but adds that you will follow the orders of those appointed over you.

"I, _____, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God."

Should you serve, you serve by swearing to support and defend the Constitution of the United States of America.

There are no other armed forces quite like us in the world. We are unique.

You heard that I am the pastor at the Cumberland Presbyterian Church.  Some of you already knew that.

It’s better than Christmas time for me over at the Cumberland Presbyterian Church.  Last week and this week both, I am preaching and teaching the Parable of the Talents.  It’s from Matthew 25:14-30 if you want to read it on your own.

Maybe, I should preach it here.  That might give the school board members a heart attack and upset the ACLU.

If you don’t mind upsetting the ACLU, you might be a veteran. 

But no preaching this morning.  You know where to find me on Sunday morning, and you are invited.

But there is a question that I always ask in the course of teaching or preaching this parable.

What did you do with what God gave you? It is a question that every God-believing person should ask themselves every day.

Now let’s put that concept into the context of today and ask:

What did you do with the liberty that you have been given by your country?

What did you do with the freedom that you have been given by the warriors who have gone before you?

Now put it in the first person.

What did I do with the liberty that I have been given?

Now let’s put it in the present and perfect tenses.

What am I doing with the freedom that I have been given?

Some of you are currently being held hostage by your adolescent minds and can’t see the liberty.  You might think that life is too restrictive, but you have more freedom than you know.

You have more liberty than you can comprehend at this time in your lives.

One day, you will have eyes to see the freedom that we enjoy in this nation. You are blessed so much to be born here, especially here in Oklahoma, not because the wind blows every day but because good moral values are still considered good.

You enjoy the blessings of liberty, but what are you going to do about that?

What will you do with the blessings of liberty that have been entrusted to you?

Some will make great achievements in the arts and sciences.

Some will contribute in the service of others in medicine or law enforcement.

Some will seek to represent many as an elected official.

Some will teach what you have learned to others.

Some will just say it’s all about me and what I can get for me and my own.

But some will serve in the armed forces and perhaps in armed combat in order to continue the blessings of liberty for another generation.

Some will write the blank check. 

Some will join the ranks of the faithful few who will put their right hands in the air and take an oath to support and defend the constitution of the United States of America against all enemies foreign and domestic.

What will you do with the liberty that those warriors before you have entrusted to you?

What will you do?

 

Address to Veterans at Burns Flat - Dill City High School Program

I was privileged to be the keynote speaker at the Veterans Day program hosted by the Government Club in the Burns Flat - Dill City School System.  These were my remarks.

Who likes music?  Think of a song that starts and ends with questions.  I will get back to that.

For now, let us will move on to another question:  Why do we celebrate  Veteran’s Day?

It’s on the calendar.  It is what you do on November 11^th.  You didn’t invent this day but you are making a special effort to observe it and to recognize these men and women that collectively we call veterans.

You might come up with reasons such as:

They served their country.

They sacrificed.

They are the less than one-half of one percent of the population of this country that put their hands in the air and said:

I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same. The oath continues with words about committing to following orders.

Officers of the armed forces continue with that I take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion, that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office I am about to enter, SO HELP ME GOD!

This is a little bigger commitment than when you sign on to work with Halliburton, McDonald’s, or Walmart.

This is just to get you in.  You still have to get through boot camp.  Some may be tougher than others, but you still have to finish this period of initial screening and orientation.

Then comes the real commitment.  Consider the words of the original Code of Conduct.  It has been updated to be more gender neutral now, but this is the one that I learned long ago.

CODE OF CONDUCT FOR THE U. S. FIGHTING MAN

1. I am an American fighting man. I serve in the forces which guard my country and our way of life. I am prepared to give my life in their defense.

2. I will never surrender of my own free will. If in command, I will never surrender my men while they still have the means to resist.

3. If I am captured, I will continue to resist by all means available. I will make every effort to escape and aid others to escape. I will accept neither parole nor special favors from the enemy.

4. If I become a prisoner of war, I will keep faith with my fellow prisoners. I will give no information, or take part in any action which might be harmful to my comrades. If I am senior, I will take command. If not, I will obey the lawful orders of those appointed over me and will back them up in every way.

5. When questioned, should I become a prisoner of war, I am bound to give only name, rank, service number and date of birth. I will evade answering further questions to the utmost of my ability. I will make no oral or written statements disloyal to my country and its allies or harmful to their cause.

6. I will never forget that I am an American fighting man, responsible for my actions, and dedicated to the principles which made my country free. I will trust in my God and in the United States of America.

These men and women seated to my right and left know this level of commitment.

It is a little more than being asked to work a couple hours overtime or work outside on a rainy day.

You can bet that your boss will yell at you more than once and you and you learn to take the correction and make yourself a little better for it.

These men and women know that it is not just about them.  Leaving a buddy behind on the battlefield is unthinkable.

Lowering standards is unconscionable.

A half hearted effort in training deserves the wrath of the sergeant or captain running the exercise.

The men and women that you see before you have lived the mantra that the more you sweat in peace, the less you bleed in war.

There is good reason to set aside a day to recognize these men and women.

But a question remains:  Why is this day important to you.  What does Veterans Day mean to you.  How is it relevant to you?

The answer is tougher than you might think for you must ask yourself, “What do you value?”

Do you value liberty?

How can you know for it is all that you have ever known?  You can study your history but all you have ever known is liberty.  All that you have ever known is freedom.  You have never tasted tyranny or feared dictatorship.  Most of you have never been to another country, especially one where freedom is not a given commodity.

How can you know that liberty is something worth valuing.

I suggest that you get a few moments with one of these men or women sometime and just listen to what they know.

What do you value?

Do you value opportunity?  Education, work, military service, are all options available to almost everyone one here.  But most of you have never known anything else.

Talk with these men and women who have seen the world and know just how blessed we are.

There is a lot of talk among candidates for president of the United States about illegal immigration, even building a wall across our southern border.  Do you know what I hear when I hear all of this political babble?

More people still want to get into this country than want out of it.  

Nobody to speak of is trying to leave and unless you broke the law and are being pursued by the law, nobody is trying to stop you if you want to go.

But so many still see our country as a land full of opportunity.  If we could only have the eyes of those desperately trying to get into our country, we might value what we have a little more.

Finally, do we value efficacy?

Efficacy is the power to make desired change.  Self efficacy is the power to make changes that we desire in ourselves.

Some examples:

·       To develop better study habits

·       To bench press 30 more pounds

·       To learn a second language

·       To quit a bad habit

·       To give up profane language

The list is what you want it to be.

Efficacy as a nation is to set our own course as a free people in a modern world.  Can we still do this?  Do we have the commitment to do this?

About 240 years ago, 13 colonies started forming an army, navy, and Marine Corps because they wanted a nation that could be self directed.  Brave men served and died forming this country.

Do we still value what we have here enough to serve in the armed forces of the United States of America?

Are we ready to fight for what we have?  Is it worth it?  Or will we watch it slowly slip away?

There is the long standing analogy of the frog place in a pot of boiling water.  It will jump out.  It doesn’t have to think about it.  There is no deliberation.  It jumps out.

But if you put a different  frog—you are never going to catch that first frog again—in a pot of room temperature water and slowly turn up the temperature 1 degree at a time, it doesn’t take too long until you have boiled frog.

It never knew what hit it.

Most people go through life never knowing what they have and what they might be losing day to day and year to year.  A small segment of our society—our service men and women—remain vigilant, watchful, and ready to preserve what most people don’t even realize they have.

Fewer than one half of one percent stand ready to preserve what our founding fathers thought was precious enough to offer their lives just to give it a chance of success.

A very few people have stepped forward to preserve for us this grand experiment that we call the United States of America.

See if these words don’t sound familiar:

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

Secure the blessings of liberty for this generation and those to come.

Secure the blessings of Liberty—what a charge.  Who can live up to this?  Who will stand and fight against those who would take this from us?

You are looking at many of them seated before you.

The challenge set forth in the Preamble to the Constitution is for everyone in this country, but only a small percentage will set aside their lives and livelihood to ensure the blessings of liberty for us all.

We are still talking about efficacy—the power to effect desired change, the power to preserve those things that we value.

As I look at you, I wonder who among you has the determination to step out of a culture that promotes selfishness and take on the yoke of service.  Who among you will pick up the torch of liberty for the generations to come?

These are some noble thoughts.  These are serious decisions to make.  Some of you may yet be a few years from making these decisions, or at least you think that you are.

For what you do today impacts whether or not you might be able to serve.  One of the best indicators of whether or not an individual can successfully negotiate basic training in the armed forces is high school graduation.

Do you finish what you start?

You might be thinking, I’m not going to college, why should I be serious about my schooling.  High school graduation—not a drop out and a GED—but graduation is a strong indicator that you can complete boot camp, and by the way, many other endeavors that will come along in life.

Do you finish what you start?

Now you must know that there is a price to be paid for serving.  It is called sacrifice.

Some sacrifice being close to family.  Some sacrifice personal liberty, even those liberties that they fight to preserve.  And some will be called to sacrifice their lives.

Thomas Jefferson once said:

The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.

Serving your country in the armed forces sometimes exacts that last full measure of devotion.  Should you serve, you may not return to enjoy the liberties for which you fought.

War is an ugly thing.  Understand that war is an ugly business.

But also under this about war—I read from the British philosopher John Stuart Mill.

“War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things: the decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth a war, is much worse. When a people are used as mere human instruments for firing cannon or thrusting bayonets, in the service and for the selfish purposes of a master, such war degrades a people. A war to protect other human beings against tyrannical injustice; a war to give victory to their own ideas of right and good, and which is their own war, carried on for an honest purpose by their free choice, — is often the means of their regeneration. A man who has nothing which he is willing to fight for, nothing which he cares more about than he does about his personal safety, is a miserable creature who has no chance of being free, unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself. As long as justice and injustice have not terminated their ever-renewing fight for ascendancy in the affairs of mankind, human beings must be willing, when need is, to do battle for the one against the other.”

I began by asking a question about a song that started and ended with a question—at least the first verse of the song, that’s the one most of us know.  Maybe you thought of one.  Here is the one that I thought of.  It begins:

Oh, say can you see by the dawn’s early light

What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming?

Does this idea, this grand experiment, this noble idea of a country still have a chance?  Did we survive the night?

Are we going to have a chance at this bizarre concept of self government?  Can we just survive the night?  Can we just last one more day at having a chance at our dream of self government, self-determination, freedom, and the prospect of liberty and justice for all.

The question at the end of the verse is just as dramatic:

Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

Does today’s generation still value freedom enough that brave men and women still step forward out of the ranks of the self centered into the ranks of selfless service.

The men and women seated before have said yes.

What will you say?

Are you willing to preserve the blessings of liberty for your children and grandchildren?

What will you say?