By Sharon L. Reidenbach

What happened to the glorious and dramatic events we like to think influenced who we’ve become? What if it were a mere comma? Or fear that redirected out life’s meaning?
For example, our Pledge of Allegiance to the flag is nothing like the Christian Socialist, Francis Bellamy wrote in August in 1892. “In the 1950’s, through the fear of Communism, the word ‘God’ was inserted to the Pledge thinking America would be protected”!
Then the biggest, and final change came through the rules of grammar! Congress wanted the comma placed after the word God, not Nation, making the phrase one thought, and that officially we were indeed a country founded on a belief in God! The Pledge had become both a patriotic oath, and a public prayer! This wasn’t what the revolutionist had in mind, nor Bellamy.
And there is another flag the Lord influenced. It is the oldest unchanged, free flag in the world, The Christian flag. It has no earthly bonds or allegiances, but to Christ. It exists for the world’s people regardless of sex, race, national, boundary, economic condition, affluence, or poverty, politics, slavery or freedom.
Yet, its conception wasn’t celestial! On September 26, 1897, Charles C. Overton, the Sunday school superintendent, had to fill in for a no-show guest speaker. He groped for something to say, spied the American flag and talked about symbolism. During his speech he proposed Christians should have their own flag. In 1907 he and Ralph Diffendorfer, secretary to the Methodist Young People’s Missionary movement, produced and promoted the Christian flag. But Lynn Harold Hough wrote the first pledge after hearing Diffendorfer talk about the flag.
Yes, we are a people who love the spectacular, and heavenly revelations. But God isn’t the god of the spectacular.
Rather, like with our life, He weaved His will into our patriotic Pledge, and into the Christian flag through a socialist, fear, a comma, a substitute speaker and two men. It’s the content that gives meaning to liberty and life, not the process.
I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
I pledge allegiance to the Christian Flag and to the Savior for whose Kingdom it stands. One Savior, crucified, risen, and coming again with life and liberty to all who believe.
God reminds us He’s at work using the small and unusual to bring about the final results glorifying Him. He’ll use any means for the greater good: 5 small stones, a teenage girl, a small boy’s lunch; size is not important. However we are suffering, be encouraged, He is behind the scene working for us. Perhaps changing our life with a comma!
“What is that in your hand?” And he [Moses] said, “A staff” (Exodus 4:2): And he led a nation.