Today, we celebrate our freedom and our heritage as we enjoy the activities of Independence Day. While we all enjoy the picnics, baseball games, apple pies, and fireworks, it’s important for us to all remember why we are free to participate in these activities.

As Americans, we must always remember that freedom isn’t free. Countless men and women gave their lives in sacrifice so that our nation can continue to be that  “shining city on a hill,” in the words of the late president Ronald Reagan. We can never thank them enough for their sacrifice, and for the sacrifices of all of our men and women in uniform.

There are those who find fault with the United States, or claim that it is irrevocably broken. While we know that our nation is not perfect — it is composed of humans, and humans are not perfect — we also know that our country is still the greatest example of freedom on earth. In our country, an immigrant can arrive with nothing but the shirt on his back, but through hard work and perseverance, eventually achieve happiness. Despite what some critics say, the American dream is not dead, and the reason it lives on is because of the freedoms that we share as Americans.

This Fourth of July, we all join together to celebrate our nation and its 236 years of history. We celebrate a land that was dedicated to one simple idea: “that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.”

Join with us today as we pray for our nation, its leaders, our armed forces, and all of those who continue to fight to keep the United States the land of the free, and the home of the brave.