PASTOR DAVE’S MUSINGS FROM THE HEARTLAND

June 29, 2022

LIFE, LIBERTY AND THE PURSIUT OF HAPPINESS (Part I)

July 4^th we celebrated the 248th anniversary of the signing of the Deceleration of Independence.  In the Deceleration the Founding Fathers affirmed that “that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”  Those gathered in Philadelphia believed they were unable to exercise their unalienable Rights because of the heavy handiness of the English government.   Therefore, they were taking measures to set themselves free of their bondage.

In 1776 it was generally accepted by the Founding Fathers that the unalienable Rights noted in the Declaration of Independence applied only to white males who owned property.  Over the years these Rights have been extended to women and persons of all races and creeds.  In over fifty years of ministry I have worked with three groups of people who generally would not seem to have been able to exercise fully their God given unalienable Rights.   There are examples in each group of individuals who have been able to experience the American dream, but in large measure most persons in the three groups still have a long way to go before they experience the dream.

It is not that people are not concerned about the persons in the three groups and little has been done to incorporate them into the fabric of American society.  Just the opposite is true.  Much time, energy, and resources have been expended to address the issues that each group presents.  Their plight becomes fodder for political debate.

By now you may asking, “Who are these three groups?”  The first are persons who struggle with substance abuse.  The mentally ill make up the second group.  The final group is the poor.  You may want to add other groups that you feel are struggling today to obtain their God given unalienable Rights.  I am sure that others could be added.  These are three that have had a central part in my own experience.

Several of the churches I served had Disciple Bible study groups.  The title for the Gospel of Luke session was “The least, the last, and the lost.”  Luke 15 which has the parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost coin along with Mathew 25: 31-46 illustrates Jesus’ concern for the least, the last, and the lost.  In our American society today those suffering from substance abuse, the mentally ill, and the poor in large part could be described as the least, the last, and the lost.  They are our neighbors who Jesus calls us to support and defend.

Over the next several weeks I would like to share some of my working with each of these groups and what I have learned along the way.  If one would listen to the news today one might get the impression that we as a society are not doing much better with each of these three groups than we were doing more than fifty years ago when I started in ministry.  That may be true.  However, I think I have learned some things over the years which might be of help to us as individuals and us as groups as we seek to reach out to substance abusers, the mentally ill, and the poor.  We all long for the day when everyone might enjoy fully life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.