America the Beautiful

How do the structures men have built compare to the works of God? Such a question was on the minds of Katharine Lee Bates and other teachers and professors from Wellesley College. When she saw the grandeur of the handiwork of God from atop Pike's Peak, she was inspired to write America the Beautiful. More than that, she expressed her dream that, "We must match the greatness of our America with the goodness of personal godly living." We have heard John Adams' words expressed many times, "Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people." Foundational to our country's strength and greatness is the personal godly living of which Miss Bates spoke. Our hearts and lives must be transformed, as St. Paul said in Romans 12:1, 2, and we must pursue godliness. Let us pray, and continue to pray, for a spiritual revival, for a New Awakening, "and every gain divine."

Article taken from Living Stories of Famous Hymns by Ernest K. Emurian. Copyright © 1955 by Baker Book House Company. Used by permission of Baker Book House Company.