By Dr. Tom Smiley
Good Morning, Mr. President, Senators, Ladies and Gentlemen:
The Bible Says, “What does it profit a man if He Gains the Whole World and losses His ONLY Soul.
I bring two specific challenges to those who serve in this Chamber.
First, a very important truth that must be considered by anyone who has authority or governance over others is the simple truth that learning to accept personal responsibility leads to health, growth, and success.
Taking personal responsibility for your own life is the first step toward personal freedom and control.
So today, I want to sound a challenge that as legislators, you do all you can to promote the value of citizens taking personal responsibility.
The government should not be an enabler that promotes a culture of government dependence.
It is clear that the very people you are charged with governing will never reach their full potential by depending on government! As legislators, you must be bold and courageous to keep in the forefront of your deliberations and laws, the truth that as individuals, we are each responsible for our own actions and the consequences that follow.
If ‘society’ is responsible for everything, then no one is personally responsible for anything!
Without personal responsibility there cannot be freedom.
My second challenge to those who serve in this Chamber is in regards to our Judeo-Christian heritage.
If America, if Georgia, loses the Judeo-Christian heritage that has given us our historic identity and the greatest of achievements in literature, art, music, education, politics, and economics, it will lose its identity and its greatness.
For the sake of our children, and their children not yet born, we must support and defend our Judeo-Christian heritage.
I urge you to be bold and brave and uncompromising in supporting our heritage, a heritage that America was founded upon, a Judo-Christian ethic; the Judeo-Christian ethic distinguishes America from all other countries.
Our Judeo-Christian heritage is what drives our belief in the biblical God of Israel, in His Ten Commandments and in His moral laws.
Keep in mind, America, the State of Georgia, will answer not to a mortal government but to the one true God.
Woodrow Wilson said,
“America was born a Christian nation for the purpose of exemplifying unto the nations of the world the principles of righteousness found in the revelation of God”.
I’m asking you, don’t apologize for preserving and defending our unique identity, character and values defined by our Judo-Christian heritage.
Please affirm our roots; it is in God we trust, it is in God we hope; it is in God we love.
There are many worthy efforts you as legislators will engage in, however, few as important as promoting personal responsibility and none as important as defending our Judeo-Christian heritage.
I pray God’s wisdom and discernment as you lead and serve this great State.
Prayer:
“Lord Jesus, thou who art the way, the truth, and the life, hear us as we pray for the truth that shall make all free.
Teach us that liberty is not only to be loved but also to be lived. Liberty is too precious a thing to be buried in books. Liberty costs too much to be hoarded.
Help us see that our liberty is not the right to do as we please, but the opportunity to please You in what we do.
I ask that those in this Chamber and in places of influence may seek Your wisdom in all deliberations, may have a strong discernment of Your will, and may honor the confidence and trust placed in them by those they govern.
In the strong name of Jesus, I pray,
Amen!
Special note: As much as I enjoyed the opportunity, there is so much more I would have loved to have shared, especially about our Judeo-Christian Heritage. However, I was given a “not to exceed” 5 minute time assignment, so I felt I must honor that request. I would love to speak at any other events or gatherings and further “unpack” my remarks regarding our Judeo-Christian Heritage.