Our freedom requires vigilance

As the people of the United States pause in their busy schedules to celebrate the Fourth of July and the freedoms we enjoy in this country, it’s an ideal time to reflect on the foundations of those freedoms.

Those courageous individuals who put their lives at extreme risk by signing the Declaration of Independence stated explicitly in the document who is responsible for granting the rights of “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights . . .”

In the very next sentence of the Declaration, the authors stated the purpose of governments is to “secure these rights.”

Our rights, our freedoms, are not granted to us by the government, but governments are instituted by the people to secure these rights.

That is a weighty responsibility.

We must never depend on the government to take care of us and decide what is in our best interests.

As the signers of the Declaration of Independence declared, that is our responsibility.

It is our responsibility to institute, to elect government officials who will preserve our God-given rights. Remember when you consider a slate of candidates to take the time to determine who gets your vote. Which candidates are the ones most likely to preserve those freedoms for you?

It is all of us who are responsible for the kind of government we put in power to preserve our rights.

To quote President Abraham Lincoln, this is truly “government of the people, by the people and for the people.”