Chapter 14

     Our Butler High School history teacher was appreciative of my interest in American History and approached me specifically to talk about my seeking information about the American Presidents.

     We talked for a bit and then he made a life changing comment to me.  He stated that it was not just who served as President that was important but who help put him in office and what their agenda was.   Therein lay true causes and effects on our country’s history.

     This significantly changed my outlook on my studies in American History and eventually led to my interests in America’s Social History as well.  

     An interesting story I read was about one of George Washington’s personal aides reporting decades after his death, he had angelic visitations that gave him visions of the future of America.  The third visitation and vision in particular seemed very similar to what I had seen in my ten dreams.  In the vision George Washington was shown a time when the United States would go through a very trying time and it would look like all was lost, but in the end, our country survived this horrendous time.  This peaked my interest.

     I have always believed that when the time comes, we will as a nation work through the challenges and come out the better nation for it. 

     This helps keep me going for sure.

     It was about this time when I also learned about the “Great Awakenings” that the United States had experienced and their influence on American History and how our country dealt with subsequent events. 

     Growing up in the Assemblies of God Church, I learned about its history of being birthed out of the Azusa Street Revival to the many heroes of the faith and their Holy Spirit-filled revivals and healing ministries.  The Assemblies of God became the largest Pentecostal Church organization and launched one of the largest missionary efforts ever in the history of the world.

     The history lessons at school introduced me to what is known as “The Great Awakening” and the great revival movements of the early 1700’s with the likes of men such as Johnathan Edwards and his “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” sermon who sought to reconcile traditional Calvin teachings with the religion’s experiential focusing on bringing people into a personal relationship with Jesus and not as much of adherence to strict doctrines.  These revivals helped change the course of American history. 

     Before the reformation begun by Martin Luther, Catholics were taught that salvation came through obedience to the church.  Martin Luther’s claim that salvation came through faith in Jesus rocked the world.  However, many of the Protestant churches soon became so doctrinally focused that they had strayed and turned their churches into social and political gatherings leaving many unknown to God. 

     Now, interests of many focusing on a direct relationship with God led to a restriction of the King’s authoritarian “Divine Right of Kings” and the proclamation of the inalienable rights of the person in “We the People” proclaimed in the Declaration of Independence.