Birthday Kickoffs
It is a major birthday year for the United States of America, as the dawn of 2026 brings with it the kickoff of a celebration (complete with newly minted coins) commemorating 250 years since the formal establishment of the nation. The year-long event will crescendo on July 4, 2026 on the 250th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence, but the entire 2026 calendar will be full of commemorations marking both the lead up to and the aftermath of that day.
In true American fashion, this kickoff coincides with another kickoff—the NFL playoffs. Fourteen teams advanced to the postseason, which will culminate in Super Bowl LX on February 8, 2026.
Analysis and eternal perspective: The American experiment has been remarkable by any human standard. For those living in modern day America, it is easy to default to a perspective that America has long been prosperous and blessed. The reality, however, is that the nation’s rise has been rapid and the country is still in its relative infancy.
It is also easy to assume that America’s leading posture in the world is automatic and permanent, but that assumption flies in the face of human history and even biblical truth.
In human terms, liberty requires vigilance. In a self-governing system like America, the people must regularly choose self-restraint and limits on government power if they are to preserve the vibrancy demonstrated over America’s first quarter millennium. Human history is full of empires and kingdoms that rose to power and then collapsed, usually under their own weight as a result of abandoning any limitation on power.
In eternal terms, true liberty is not bound by any earthly rule. God’s kingdom is not of this world (Jn. 18:36) and you are a citizen of heaven (Philip. 3:20). Therefore, you may certainly have an understandable and appropriate fervor for your home country (I certainly do for America, which has secured historically unprecedented freedom and opportunity for my family), but your ultimate home is—and your ultimate allegiance belongs to—heaven.
As for the football, let’s go Bears!
The preceding article originally appeared in Thann’s “The Equipped” Weekly Newsletter. For more information on Thann’s weekly email, click here.