American songwriter Irving Berlin was a Jewish immigrant from Russia who came to America to escape religious persecution. He loved his new country and its freedom, and while serving in WWI he expressed that love in a song he wrote as a prayer. He did not publish the song, however, but tucked it away with his belongings. In 1938, celebrity singer Kate Smith asked him to write a song for her radio show for Armistice Day. With the evils of Hitler’s Germany on the rise, he knew it was time to bring out his prayer song. So on her show, Kate Smith sang Irving Berlin’s song for the first time: God Bless America.
For those of us living in America, may these words be our prayer today:
“God bless America,
Land that I love.
Stand beside her and guide her
Through the night with the lights from above.
From the mountains to the prairies
To the oceans white with foam,
God bless America, my home sweet home.
God bless America, my home sweet home.”
Recovery2 Step: “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord” (Psalm 33:12). Happy July 4th, America!
