I’ve said it before, but I’m going to say it again: Thank God that you are an American! This Thanksgiving, I’m profoundly grateful for the United States of America. America is unlike any other nation on earth. Our heritage of Freedom is unique and unparalleled in greatness and achievement. Our People are different in character and build. Our institutions are noble and inspired. America is geographically distinctive and blessed beyond measure – the richest of all fruited plains in the world. This Thanksgiving, I give my unashamed and unapologetic love, adulation, and thanks to my homeland, America. 

I’ve spent most of the past two and a half years outside of my beloved country. Nothing more is required to feel deep longing and love for America than to be away from her for any prolonged period of time. I miss her more than I can say. I miss her majestic mountains, radiant rivers, and fantastic forests. I miss her hardy, down-to-earth people. I miss my fellow patriots, the protections guaranteed under the Constitution, and my birthright of Freedom. 

I also miss my Liberty’s teeth – my guns. I miss being able to have a legal right of self-defense – and fellow countrymen who acknowledge and support it. I’m truly grateful for the natural law of self-defense and for the fact that America still safeguards it even in the face of malicious attempts to enslave the population. 

Let’s be honest: The only thing holding back the flood waters of global tyranny is America. And the only element of society in America holding back the onslaught of Satanic despotism is the mostly white, Christian, constitutionalist gun-owner – the “bitter clingers” and “deplorables” in the “fly-over” states. 

In fly-over America, the rebellious, independent, manly spirit of the Founding Fathers lives on. It’s the rednecks, not the white-collar city-dwellers, who represent real America. It’s in the rural areas, in middle America, in the communities no one has ever heard of, where Americana dwells. 

Rebellion to tyrants and obedience to God is the American tradition. The most rebellious and, simultaneously, religious swaths of America are found in the red states. We’re the ones called “domestic terrorists” because we won’t let Antifa burn down our cities, because we don’t march with the Marxist front group Black Lives Matter, because we don’t tear down statues of our national heroes, because we reject schools teaching communism to our kids, and because we refuse to be injected with bioweapons of mass genocide disguised as “godsend” vaccines. We’re true America and all those who support the enemy’s agenda are imposters and traitors. 

America is much more than a political entity. America didn’t suddenly begin in 1776 or when the Mayflower landed or when Colombus arrived. Rather, America is an idea and a land of prophetic purpose, history, and destiny. The idea is summed up by the great triumvirate of values: Faith, Family, Freedom. America is the ultimate home to those who worship God, who seek to raise their families in righteousness, and who love their Liberty. 

America has an ancient history. She was home to several great civilizations that historians have scarcely acknowledged and which average people know practically nothing about. My own religious tradition, which I attest I know to be true through the Holy Spirit which has touched my heart, teaches that God led various peoples to this Promised Land. An ancient seer recorded the special significance of this land, identified as Zion, and the promises offered to those who faithfully dwell here: 

“And this land shall be a land of liberty unto the Gentiles, and there shall be no kings upon the land, who shall raise up unto the Gentiles. 

“And I will fortify this land against all other nations. 

“And he that fighteth against Zion shall perish, saith God. 

“For he that raiseth up a king against me shall perish, for I, the Lord, the king of heaven, will be their king, and I will be a light unto them forever, that hear my words. 

“Wherefore, for this cause, that my covenants may be fulfilled which I have made unto the children of men, that I will do unto them while they are in the flesh, I must needs destroy the secret works of darkness, and of murders, and of abominations. 

“Wherefore, he that fighteth against Zion, both Jew and Gentile, both bond and free, both male and female, shall perish” (2 Nephi 10:11-16). 

This promise has been fulfulled thus far. America has had no king. As Thomas Paine said, the law is king of America. Autocrats have no place here. America was reserved for a free people – a people that would serve God and obey His laws. It was, as Isaiah and other ancient Hebrew prophets foretold, the land where the Lord would establish Zion prior to His Second Coming.  

Another olden day Israelite prophet recorded similar promises made to another group of Ancient Americans and which apply to modern America with equal force: 

“And the Lord would not suffer that they should stop beyond the sea in the wilderness, but he would that they should come forth even unto the land of promise, which was choice above all other lands, which the Lord God had preserved for a righteous people. . . . 

“And now, we can behold the decrees of God concerning this land, that it is a land of promise; and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall serve God, or they shall be swept off when the fulness of his wrath shall come upon them. And the fulness of his wrath cometh upon them when they are ripened in iniquity. 

“For behold, this is a land which is choice above all other lands; wherefore he that doth possess it shall serve God or shall be swept off; for it is the everlasting decree of God. And it is not until the fulness of iniquity among the children of the land, that they are swept off. 

“And this cometh unto you, O ye Gentiles, that ye may know the decrees of God—that ye may repent, and not continue in your iniquities until the fulness come, that ye may not bring down the fulness of the wrath of God upon you as the inhabitants of the land have hitherto done. 

“Behold, this is a choice land, and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall be free from bondage, and from captivity, and from all other nations under heaven, if they will but serve the God of the land, who is Jesus Christ” (Ether 2:7, 9-12). 

Again, these glorious promises have been and are being fulfilled. Inasmuch as Americans have worshiped Christ and have honored His commandments, we have prospered and enjoyed more Freedom than any other nation in history. Yet, as we’ve allowed communism, LGBT mania, political correctness, infanticide, feminism, New Age philosophy, and immorality and perversions of a thousand types, creep into the land, we’ve gradually lost our rights, decreased in prosperity and unity, and are on the verge of completely abdicating our Liberty. The Lord’s wrath is starting to come upon us to chasten us and humble us so that we will once more return to Him so that He may pour out even greater blessings on this Promised Land of Zion. 

Dear reader, even if you disbelieve the inspired words of the ancient prophets cited above, our own American Founders repeated the very same thoughts, cementing forever the notion that virtue and religion are necessary to the maintenance of a free state. John Adams bluntly stated: 

“The only foundation of a free constitution is pure virtue, and if this cannot be inspired into our people in a greater measure than they have it now, they may change their rulers and the forms of government, but they will not obtain a lasting liberty. They will only exchange tyrants and tyrannies” (John Adams to Zabdiel Adams, June 21, 1776). 

A close associate of Mr. Adams, and a distance relative of mine, Caleb Strong, added: 

“Indeed, we are generally apt to ascribe too much to the efficacy of laws and government, as if they alone could secure the happiness of the people; but no laws will be sufficient to counteract the influence of manners which are corrupted by vice and voluptuousness; and it is beyond the power of any government to render the circumstances of the citizens easy and prosperous, if they want the habits of industry and frugality. – Government is necessary, to preserve the public peace, the persons and property of individuals; but our social happiness must chiefly depend upon other causes; upon simplicity and purity of manners; upon the education that we give our children; upon a steady adherence to the customs and institutions of our ancestors; upon the general diffusion of knowledge, and the prevalence of piety and benevolent affections among the people. 

“Our forms of government, are, doubtless, like all other institutions, imperfect; but they will secure the blessings of freedom to the citizens, and preserve their tranquility, as long as they are virtuous; and no constitution, that has been, or can be formed, will secure those blessings to a depraved and vicious people” (Patriotism and Piety, 138). 

President George Washington concurred with his two esteemed compatriots, stating: 

“Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that man claim the tribute of patriotism, who should labor to subvert these great pillars of human happiness, these firmest props of the duties of men and citizens” (George Washington, Farewell Address, 1796). 

Other such statements could fill volumes. The great sages of our past all believed in God and held that America was set apart by Him for inspired reasons. This belief was handed down by our noble Pilgrim and Puritan forefathers who likewise believed that America was a special place reserved by God for higher purposes. The notable preacher Increase Mather, for instance, had declared: 

“This is Immanuel’s land. Christ by a wonderful Providence hath dispossessed Satan, who reigned securely in these Ends of the Earth, for Ages the Lord Knoweth how many, and here the Lord hath caused as it were New Jerusalem to come down from Heaven; He dwels in this place” (Increase Mather, in Michael G. Hall, The Last American Puritan: The Life of Increase Mather, 1639-1723, 99). 

The idea that America was the New Jerusalem and the abode of God persisted through the ages and was firmly rooted in the minds of the men and women who established the United States. To cite only one example, in 1796, John Lathrop delivered an Independence Day oration wherein he asserted: 

“Liberty descended from Heaven on the 4th of July, 1776. . . . 

“The first promulgation of the Gospel of Liberty was the declaration of American independence . . . the Americans were elected by God to redeem from bondage the miserable victims of arbitrary power.” 

To peoples of other nations, it no doubt sounds presumptuous and prideful to hear Americans assert that we are a chosen people of God and that America itself is a blessed and unique land – the very Zion of the Almighty. Yet, it’s true! It was the belief of the ancients who inhabited this land. It was the testimony of the Pilgrims who tamed this wild continent and the Founding Fathers who erected a constitutional Republic. And it is my fervent witness that I happily share at this time. 

I thank God for America! There’s nowhere else on earth like her. Her beauty is awe-inspiring, spanning splendid mountain ranges, effulgent forests, rugged deserts, extensive plains, rich farmland, teeming lakes and rivers, tropical islands, and artic expanses. Her achievements in technology, medicine, and science are unrivalled. She has raised more people farther out of poverty than any other nation has ever dreamed. Her People have been traditionally good, gracious, and godly. Her advancements in the art of government, science of law, and principles of Liberty are unmatched. And, significantly, God has planted His standard – His ensign to the nations – in America. 

Lastly, I ask, what’s in a name? Most people believe that the name “America” comes from the Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci. This, however, is perhaps not the case. The true origin may be far more ancient and more significant. The name may actually derive from a name meaning “Kingdom of Heaven.” If true, it’s a fitting title for God’s Zion and New Jerusalem. 

My heart is full of love for America. I love Lady Liberty. She’s beautiful to my sight, to my mind, and to my soul. I long for the day I can finally bring my wife and daughter to this special place to experience the spirit of destiny and divine purpose that possesses the nation from sea to shining sea. Immanuel’s land is the only place for me. I ask my Heavenly Father and His Son, my Savior, Jesus Christ, to preserve a righteous remnant here, to speedily establish Zion, and to let the New Jerusalem be built up and shine its light to the world. God bless America! 

Zack Strong, 
November 26, 2021