Age 239 Poem by Curtis Johnson

Age 239
By Curtis Johnson

Please allow me to introduce myself. Though I am well known around the world, there may be a side of me that many have not seen or known. Many know me presently as well as in years gone by as one who is both kind and strong. Some of course even dislike me, and view me as an overbearing authoritarian wishing to impose my will upon the world. Some deem me a hypocrite, because I have demonstrated some inconsistencies through my tenure in this world. Anyway, there are times when everyone needs to express themselves and share their own take of themselves. Beyond that, I guess historians will just have to do the rest.

I was born on July 4,1776, and I am 239 years of age. I am very young in comparison to many of my kind who are much older than me. However, few have been blessed to achieve and accomplish as much as I have in these years of growth and triumph. Through time and the good providence of Almighty God, I have grown much larger and there have been major changes for the better. Over time, there have been parts of me that did not want to change. This created such discord within me that nearly tore me apart. Through it all,
I have not only survived but have strived to become the strongest of them all. I have no need to boast, because I realize that I have come this far by the grace of God to whom I am grateful.

I and others of goodwill tried to build a world of peace and tranquility after the walls fell in Berlin, Germany. For a while it appeared that we were creating a brave new world, until the twin towers fell in New York City. It seems that we do have a new world that‘s vastly different from the other world prior to 2001: The prior world was Pre-911, and the present new world is Post 911.

I am still fighting terrorists and perhaps will be forevermore at war with them. There is no other in the world built like me. I am more that 300 million strong and still have a small but formidable military. In spite of the power I possess, it feels like I’m getting weaker. Moreover, I’m deeply concerned with my own war at home. I’m fighting bravely to hold on to my convictions and to live up to my responsibilities.

I am presently experiencing deep and penetrating changes. In fact I am changing so rapidly that I could be overwhelmed if I did not have a strong and lasting belief system. It seems there have always been times and seasons when I was pressed upon to make major changes. In most cases I believe that the changes made me better and wiser, but on the other hand I am allowing myself to change to the point where I am becoming
Unlike the true me. There is change that is virtuous and everyone wins, and yet there is also change that is destructive and everyone loses.

A generation ago, I became better as a result of being pressed upon to live out the true meaning of my existence. I was pressed to reexamine the core of my being and live up to the constitutional principles upon which I was born. Also, the biblical world view that I proclaimed was sorely tested and analyzed, resulting in my becoming even stronger.

In the last few decades it appears that I am being called upon again to change course and go the way of other nations, to become one with the world. These changes are not only political and social, but spread a huge tent that radically alters and revolutionizes both culture and religion. Therein lies a problem, because I was born to be different, and I am different.

I was born different with a completely different purpose. My purpose cannot be fully implemented and realized apart from my continued reliance upon the constitution of the United States and adherence to my biblical world view, which gave birth to me. Please don’t write me off as a ‘has been’, because God isn’t finished with me yet. I know that I am not perfect, and I also know that I am a miracle in progress. My name is the United States of America, and may God always bless and shed His grace upon me.