The Core says religious freedom is about people being able to live out convictions

>> Elsie: Net.

>> Walker Wildmon: We inform religious freedom is about people of faith being able to live out their faith, live out their convictions no matter where they are.

>> Rick Green: We equip sacred honor is the courage to speak truth, to live out your free speech.

>> Don Wildmon: We also rejoice in our sufferings because we know that suffering produces perseverance, perseverance, character and character. This is at the The Core on American Family Radio.

Walker Wildmon and Rick Green discuss America's Independence Day celebration

>> Rick Green: Welcome to at the The Core Rick Walker Wildmon and Rick Green. I'm Rick Green, America's Constitution coach. And I'm feeling red, white and blue. How about anybody else out there? What a weekend. Wow, wow, wow. I just. I don't know. I don't know how to. What could I possibly add to the most patriotic, most incredible Independence Day of my lifetime? I don't know. Maybe there's somebody. I'm. I'm not that old, you know, somewhere in middle ages. I'm 55. Just to be blunt. I've never seen anything like this. I know the Reagan years. I was a kid, you know, through most of that, I guess teenager towards the end of it. But I know the Reagan years were good for patriotism. I think Reagan did a fantastic job of restoring patriotism in the country, but nothing like this. This was by far the most amazing celebration of America that we have ever seen. And I know people talk about the, the bicentennial, you know, in, in 1976 and the freedom Train and some of the stuff. They did pretty good, Pretty good. But Donald Trump put not just one exclamation point on the birthday of America and the greatness of America, which is an important point here in terms of how we celebrate the birthday of the country. He put, I don't know, you know, 47,000. No. How about 841,000 exclamation points on, our celebration? The fireworks display in D.C. is not just a little bit bigger than any fireworks display in the history of mankind. It's like double what the next biggest one was. There will never be another fireworks display like that. I was so proud of our little fireworks display here at the Patriot Academy campus. I'm hoping everybody in the sound of my voice right now did something on Independence Day. Rick your friends, family, your community. I hope you got together at your courthouse or at your. At your church. Hope, there were a lot of church celebrations, like, the church being the epicenter of the community. But, but we had a big bash here at the Patriot Academy campus in Constitution City, Texas, of course, and. And I was so proud of it. I mean, everything went just Fantastic. Especially, you know, considering my, my travel schedule before that doing, you know, Independence Day events all over the country and trying to get in and us get everything together. My wife did an amazing job. My, my daughter Alicia just, they, they pulled off a phenomenal event. We had close to a thousand people here and Ben Franklin and George Washington and full recitation of the Declaration. We had a Duncan Booth and a bouncy house and all the good stuff. Right? I mean it was, it was absolutely phenomenal. Everything timed out perfectly. Massive fire, the largest fireworks display I've ever seen personally. and then, then I get back, I've got. Well, I was, I was supposed to be, I was supposed to be prepared a sermon and. Because the next day on July 5, I was, I was preaching it. I say preaching. I'm not technically a preacher. I'm not an ordained minister or anything. I give presentations, I should say, in churches all over the country on the founding of the country, faith of the founding fathers, that sort of thing. So I was doing that at my home church here in, in Fredericksburg, which is right next door to Constitution City. So, supposed to be preparing for that because I hadn't had a chance to even think about it until after our celebration was over, which was like 10 o', clock, I guess, 10:30, 11, something like that. When we got done, but I could not take my eyes off of the Washington D.C. party and Fireworks display. So ours had been great. I mean, we were, the music was awesome. I mean, I'm there Rick my whole family and a thousand of our closest friends and it was, it was awesome. I get back to my little cottage here on the campus and I start working on this sermon. But of course, you know, my social media feeds blowing up Rick all these amazing videos of what's going on in D.C. and the weather, you know, it delayed the deal in D.C. probably some of you. In fact, I'd love to hear from you if you were at D.C. or actually, let's do it this way. Let's do it this way. Call in and tell me about your celebration, wherever it was. If you were in dc, I'd love to hear about some. Here's some firsthand, stories of that. If you had a, celebration at your home or wherever you were, I'd love to hear about it. 888-589-8840. Call in Rick those 888-589-8840. But this D.C. fireworks show, they, you could. The entire horizon was lit up and it wasn't Just like the entire horizon, like, across the horizon, you had fireworks, all at the same time. Like, not one going over here and then one going over there. It was all at the same time. But then you go up a level, like there were multiple levels. So you're right on the horizon. You see this massive, just beautiful display of fireworks and the camera shots from the World War II memorial to the Washington Monument to all of it. But then you go up above that, and I don't know that. I mean, I don't know what the distance was. Another hundred feet or whatever, another layer of, fireworks, and then it was just. It was off the charts, folks. If you didn't see any of it, if you didn't watch it live or you haven't seen clips, I'm assuming everybody listening probably did. But if you didn't go look for that, go. Go search, go watch on YouTube. Go to the White House website, wherever you got to go. You have to watch at least part. I haven't got to watch the whole thing. I think it was 40 minutes. 800. See if I can remember the number. Right. 851,000 or 841,000 shells. I don't know how many mortars that was, but they had to have melted down 10,000 mortars. I don't know.

Terry Black: Soccer is not what makes America great

it was. It was. It was incredible. But why, why would we go to all this trouble? Why would people be gathering all over the nation and in every community across this great country? Why would Washington, D.C. be lit up like that? What was so worth celebrating? What would be worth spending time, money, effort to fire off the fireworks, to have the party, to, play the music, to do all the things that everybody did on Saturday. What makes it worth it? In other words? What I'm asking is, we were all waving the flag this weekend. Why is that flag worthy of being waved? well, I can tell you it ain't our soccer team. All right?

>> Rick Green: No, I know people are going to be mad at me now. They're probably going to call in Rick eight. There's some soccer fans out there that are. The most hilarious tweet I think I saw this morning was, you know, the end of my 24 hour, 24 hours of being a soccer fan. So, look, I'm sorry, soccer fan. Soccer is not even in the top five in American sports. And, and so even just to get into the. To the top 16 for America was a big deal. If we had won that, that match against Belgium and made it into the top eight, that. That Would have been just crazy if we'd won the whole thing. What an embarrassment for Europe. I mean, Europe lives for soccer. It's like number 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. It's the top 10 sports in all these other nations here in America. Of course, it's baseball, football, basketball. You know, I think even hockey's bigger, bigger in America than, soccer anyway. I'm sorry soccer fans. But great, for the American economy. Great to showcase America, to have the tournament here. And there's still lots of fun days to come. but that is certainly not what makes America great. It is not what makes us celebrate. We celebrate in America on the 4th of July every year, but especially here in the 250th because of what the flag stands for, because of what Lincoln described. The cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion. If you take that, just lift that line out of his Gettysburg Address where he's talking about honoring those who made the ultimate sacrifice. And he says that's how. By having an increased devotion to the cause. So what we were celebrating is the cause. And there in the document that we're actually celebrating 250th birthday of the Declaration of, of Independence, the birth of our nation. In that document, Jefferson says we are declaring. That's the first paragraph. That's how the first paragraph ends. To declare the causes which impel them to the separation. The cause. What is the cause? The cause in America is life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. And that it comes from God, not government. Comes from God, not our neighbors. That it's built on, as Jefferson said, we lay the foundation on such principles and, and organize the powers in such forms as shall seem to them the most likely to affect their safety and happiness. What are the principles? Truth.

>> Rick Green: We hold these truths to be self evident. Life, liberty, pursuit of happiness, the consent of the governed, the ability to alter or abolish government. Whenever we think it's in any way infringing upon those things. Man, this is this system, this, this, this longest living constitutional republic, this, this, this most incredible experiment and freedom the world has ever known. The best results that any nation has ever experienced. In any category, you pick the category. Whether it's prosperity and wealth, whether it's it's the ability to move yourself out of, one level of the economy to another. In other words, that you can, whether you're born into abject poverty and can become the wealthiest person on the planet, or you're born into, a wealthy family and able to multiply that as Donald Trump did. You know, granted, he started Rick some, but, man, look at what he did Rick it. Look at what his kids are doing Rick it. I think of families like my friends in Lockhart, Texas, the Black family, Terri and Patti Black, who have a barbecue joint there that their dad Edgar started and they did well Rick for decades, couple decades, three decades, I guess, and then handed it off to their kids. And their three kids have now grown it. And you see Black's barbecue in the DFW airport and all over the place now, you know, that's just a perfect example of the American dream, is not. There's not one specific, outcome for the American dream. That's why it doesn't say life, liberty and property. So it's not just land, which is clearly a big part of it, but it's the pursuit of happiness. Whatever it is that God put on your heart, that's the American Dream. That here in America, whatever God puts in your heart, whatever the desires he put in your heart are, that you get to pursue that in this country. I mean, obviously, if it's not subverting the public order, I don't think God would put that in your heart anyway. But if you have an evil desire and you do something that's evil that you don't have the freedom to pursue, we're going to shut you down on that. That's why we have laws. It's what the system of civil, liberty is all about. But within that, within those boundaries, God's boundaries. Zig Ziglar said, God's best blessings are found within his boundaries. So within those boundaries, recognizing, as Jefferson said, that the firm basis of liberty is a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are the gift of God, that they're not to be violated, but Rick his wrath. Indeed, I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just and his justice cannot sleep forever. And he was referring to slavery. And of course, his justice came in a big way Rick the Civil War and, the casualties and the price paid for, for slavery. And of course, America was ahead of the game, ahead of almost every nation on the planet. First to ban the slave trade, fourth to ban slavery completely. I mean, so even when we do sin, when we do have a national, depravity, there's a price to be paid for that. When we pursue holiness and pursue righteousness and pursue good things, then there's incredible blessings that come Rick that. And so whatever measurement you want to have, wealth, freedom, religious liberty, whatever it is. America has surpassed every other nation in the history of mankind. So we have much, much to celebrate. And I don't think the celebration is over. I don't think we stop Rick July 4th. I think it's the two 50th is clearly July 4th, 2026, all the way through July 4th, 2027. So we have much celebrating yet to do. But as I will say for the millionth time, that celebration has to be informed. Patriotism, as Reagan put it. Not just a renewed patriotism, not just a, temporary patriotism, not just a patriotism because everybody else is waving the flag. We're going to do it. A patriotism born out of an understanding of who we are and what we have and why it's so special and how to keep it, how to preserve it, how to protect it. And we got a lot of that this weekend. We had, I think, a. I can't say perfect. I don't know, maybe it was. I felt like our celebration here at Constitution City was perfect. I think the DC Celebration was incredible. I think the last few weeks, the State Fair there, all those things. Incredible. As close to perfect as we could probably get. Way, way better than if Donald Trump had not been president. Can you imagine? The celebrations would all be drag queen story hours if Joe Biden had still been in the White House. Oh, it would have been terrible. But because of Donald Trump's victory, because of the team that he put in place, because of the emphasis, on a red dedication to God, because of an emphasis on a renewal of the principles that made us great in the first place. A teaching of the Declaration of Independence principles. Because of all that, it's been an amazing celebration, and there is much, much yet to come.

What did you do on July 4, 2026 for America's 250th

all right. Phones are already lighting up. Would love to hear your story of the 250th. What did you do on July 4, 2026? I hope you remember it for the rest of your life. I hope you're able to tell your grandkids about it. I'd love for you to tell me about it today over the phone. So 888-589-8840 is the phone number 888-589-8840. Share Rick me what you were doing, for the 4th of July and for Independence Day, and, we'll talk about some of the things that we were doing here at the campus and some of the things that came out of D.C. some of the things that are coming, some of the things yet to Come. There's gonna be a lot of cool stuff happening. Of course. Don't forget Constitution Day coming up in just a few weeks, September 17th. We'll have some big celebrations then as well. so stay Rick me, folks. Rick Green, America's Constitution coach. We are celebrating America's 250th birthday. You're listening to at the The Core,

>>  : America's 250th birthday. It's a great excuse to have some extra cake and ice cream, but we can help your celebration go well beyond that. Show your patriotism Rick America 250 apparel that will become a memento of this special year. We also have special episodes on AFA Stream to help underscore that America is a Christian nation and help you find God in the Constitution. Find all of this and more in one place. Afa.net topics 250 this is at the The Core on American Family Radio with your host, Rick Green.

>> Rick Green: Boston harbor, huh? Paak a few cars by Haavaad Yaad. I hope Boston had some good celebrations. You know, Massachusetts has gone so far left in its leadership, but the. There's still some great patriots out there. I love going to, well, Boston. I love going to Lexington and Concord. man, so many cool places to go, and, there's still a lot of great patriots there, but, man, their government is crazy. Okay, so let's go to the phones. 888-589-8840. What did you do on July 4, Independence Day, for the 250th birthday? Christie is up next. And, guys, if you could patch her in, my. My call program, just, crashed. Kristin, can you hear me?

>> Jeff: I can hear you. Can you hear me?

>> Rick Green: Yes, ma'.

>> Jeff: Am.

>> Rick Green: All right, what part of Texas you call them from? Where'd you have your celebration?

>> Jeff: Right in the heart of Texas. Belton, Texas, actually.

>> Rick Green: You're not far. We used to play baseball up there a lot Rick our. Rick our homeschool team. So you're, you. Did you do your gathering in Belton or did y' all go somewhere else?

>> Jeff: it is in Belton, out by Cedar Ridge Paak. Cedar Ridge? Up by the lake on Belton Lake.

>> Rick Green: Nice. Nice. So what did y' all do?

>> Jeff: So some of our family started the morning off in one of the largest Fourth of July parades in the United States. To be honest Rick you, at Belton Fourth of July Parade, we had over 200 floats and a great time at the parade. And then we all, as a family, join out at Sear Ridge park under one of the pavilions and Every year we go out there, we have a big Fourth of July celebration Rick catfish.

>> Rick Green: Ooh. Now that I would love. I would love to do that. We used to go fishing a lot. You know, I'm, from Arkansas originally. I don't usually admit that on air, you know, because Texans don't when they're not from Texas. I'm an American by birth and a Texan only by the grace of God, but I have a lot of great family in Arkansas. And, Man. Yeah, that's, that's, That's a. That's good.

Belton, Texas, celebrates 250th Independence Day with patriotic program

So catfish and you had. How big of a group did y' all have together?

>> Jeff: total. I think our headcount was about 162.

>> Rick Green: Yeah. Nice. Okay. What about fireworks? Did y' all do fireworks?

>> Jeff: No, we usually disperse after our little patriotic program. our patriotic program starts off Rick one of our veterans leading the flag parade of the Littles. They all get a flag and they march around the pavilion, around all the people Rick To the Stars and Stripes Forever song.

>> Rick Green: Oh, cool.

>> Jeff: and then after that, we just have miscellaneous, ah, different songs that give all glory and praise to God and thank him for our freedoms and our United States will share stories from the uncles. My grandfather was actually the oldest of 12, and there was only one sister. She was the second oldest. And so all of those boys had lots of kids, and that one girl had lots of kiddos.

>> Rick Green: So you guys have a, you have a God honoring Independence, day, which is so important because we wouldn't have this freedom if God hadn't given it to us. We started our big, big bash Rick a couple of worship songs as well. And, man, I think that's absolutely the way to do it. Way to go, Belton, Texas. Christy, thanks for calling in. God bless you and have a, have a wonderful 250th for the whole of the next year. And, and, and if you didn't read the Declaration of Independence out loud at your gathering last Saturday, do it. Yeah, do it next year. Do it next year. Be a great time to do it.

>> Jeff: Yes, sir.

>> Caroline: Thank you.

>> Jeff: God's blessings.

>> Rick Green: Hey, God bless you. Thanks for calling. Love it, love it, love it.

Elsie is from Arkansas. What part Arkansas you calling from

All right, let's head to. Since I mentioned being from Arkansas. Elsie is from Arkansas. Go ahead, Elsie. What part Arkansas you calling from?

>> Elsie: south of Little Rock. Is this green?

>> Rick Green: It is. Are you like Mabelvill? Well, south, I guess would be. Where?

>> Elsie: I talked to you before. and, And I'm about. Yes, I'm about a mile from Chico Road.

>> Rick Green: You're kidding me.

>> Elsie: I'm about a fourth a mile from Green Road.

>> Rick Green: Oh my goodness, you're right into Chico. That's. I'm the green that that road was named at. Well, not me, but my dad. Yeah. So that's, that's literally where I grew up. I spent first nine years of my life right there on Chico Road. Wow, Elsie, thanks for calling.

>> Elsie: Walk over there in 30 minutes time from my house. But you're going to be surprised at what I tell you then.

>> Rick Green: Okay.

>> Elsie: Hoping it was you. Okay. About about three, four miles from my house here on Halero Springs, is Ivy Chapel Church and it's ah, it's the Disciples of Christ. I grew up partly there and in another Christian church. I'm Baptist now. I tell people I used to be Christian, now I'm Baptist. But anyway, on the 4th of July I went by myself over to the church, the cemetery. And my great great grandmother Rebecca Ivy gave the land for the cemetery there. And, and the church was established in 1874. And it's a new church there, but it's. The old church is still there. And I went out and decorated her grave because she was a direct descendant to one of the signers of the Declaration.

>> Rick Green: Oh wow. No kidding.

>> Elsie: Arthur Middleton.

>> Rick Green: Yes. Yes, he was.

>> Elsie: so.

>> Rick Green: He was Georgia, right? Was he Georgia? Let's see.

>> Jeff: Art.

>> Elsie: No, in South Carolina.

>> Rick Green: South Carolina. Okay, so he was what, he was one of the ones that got captured and and held at St. Augustine.

>> Elsie: Okay. I didn't know where he was held, but I have a book that's got all of the signers and their history. Yeah, I've learned something about him and.

>> Jeff: Oh, that's Middleton.

>> Elsie: Middleton Plantation.

>> Rick Green: They weren't part of that. That's.

>> Elsie: Then I. Isn't that something? You lived, you live not too far from that yourself. I love it.

>> Rick Green: No, no, that's fantastic. I'll tell you quick story. So, so I went to, I was in St. Augustine camera, what we were there for. But I started studying a little. I found a historical plaque and it was talking about the three signers, from South Carolina being held there by the British. And, and so I started looking into it and so apparently one of the Georgia guys, Bunton Gwinnett, he led an expedition to try to rescue them and it failed. And the governor of it was either Governor or Lieutenant Governor of Georgia, called him all kinds of names. Scoundrel and everything else. So he challenged him to a duel. This was About a year after the Declaration had been signed, they had a duel, and he died. They both shot each other in the leg, and he died of an infection. So, one of the signers of the Declaration, as a result of a failed mission to rescue your post, not your posterity, your ancestor, ended up dying in a duel a year later. So, there you go. You learned something new today. Or maybe you already knew that story. I don't know. But, Elsie, thank you for calling in. That is so cool. She's right there, where I grew up. Just right there on Chico Road in, Little Rock, Arkansas. Too cool.

The real issue now is what are you going to do with America

Okay, let's go to Scott in Tennessee. Scott, go ahead, man.

>> Jeff: Good afternoon. First time caller. Good to talk to you, but my dad. 82.

>> Rick Green: Hey, Scott, you're cut. You're cutting out, so I can't, I'm just getting about every other word. Try again. We'll try one more time. Nope. Now I'm getting nothing. We lost him. All right, Scott, Travis, try calling back when you get to a better signal. We'll be glad to take your call. 888-589-8840. I do have to say so. So, whether you got together and you had catfish, whether you got together and, you know, hot dogs and, hamburgers and all that good stuff, whatever you ate, and whether or not you had fireworks, the fireworks fizzle. No matter how fancy they are, no matter how fun it is, no matter how amazing it is. And Jon Adams, you know, thought we should be doing all this on July 2nd, since that's when they actually voted for independence. But July 4th is when they got the final language of the Declaration of Independence itself, the document. And, Jefferson and, Secretary. I'm, sorry, not Jefferson. Jon Hancock was President of Congress. Hancock and, Secretary Thompson signed on the fourth. And that's why we celebrate the fourth instead of the second, like Adams thought we would do. But regardless of fireworks, whatever else you had, the real issue now is, what are you going to do Rick it? What are you going to do afterwards? Will you give of your life, your fortune, your sacred honor, in the same way that the Founding Fathers did? And if the answer is yes, how are you going to do it? That's the other thing you can call in Rick Give me some action items on how you're going to spend the next year. Giving of your life, fortune, and sacred honor in the 250th to make sure that we give our kids and our grandkids the best chance possible at another 250 years. And every Time I say that I have to acknowledge, of course, if the Lord comes back, great. I, know there's no, you know, America's not going to be here forever, and the Lord's coming back at some point. We just don't know when. He said, no man knows the day, so hope he comes back tomorrow. Messes up all my plans, but he may not come back for another 50 years. 100 years, 250 years. Yes, I know lots of prophecies that are. That are happening right now coming true, and we're watching some incredible things happening. but we don't know. We just don't know. So I want to make sure I'm a good steward until he comes back. I want to make sure I obey his command to occupy until he returns. I hope you think the same way. And if you do, then what are you going to do to make sure that. That we hand this off to our kids and grandkids and give them the best chance possible for it to last another 250 years? Be thinking about that. And give me some answers on that. 888-589-8840. But also, just call in and let me know what you did for the 4th of July in your community or Rick your family.

Jeff in North Carolina attended the 27th annual reading of the Declaration

Next up is Jeff in North Carolina. Jeff, how'd you spend it?

>> Jeff: Oh, hot, first of all.

>> Jeff: But it was only about 90 degrees. Can you hear me?

>> Rick Green: Yes, but we were 98, I think, so. Go ahead.

>> Jeff: Yeah, it was only 90 degrees at 10 in the morning when, they began the.

>> Jeff: Ah.

>> Rick Green: Oh, okay.

>> Jeff: We do every year here. It was the 27th annual reading of the Declaration of Independence in front of the, 1747 courthouse.

>> Rick Green: Oh, wow.

>> Jeff: Which I love. Over a green that's about four blocks long that ends at the water Rick three cannons and a, What do you call it?

>> Jeff: Just basically a monument.

>> Rick Green: Yeah.

>> Jeff: Joseph Hughes. And Joseph Hughes, as you probably know, not only was a signer of the Declaration, but, was the leader of the North Carolina delegation and also started the, U.S. navy.

>> Rick Green: Oh, no, I did not know that part. So he started the Navy?

>> Jeff: Yeah, he started the Navy, died at 44, from basically the strain of everything that happened leading up to the Declaration and then also to the Constitution.

>> Rick Green: How long was that after, So if he was 44, how long was that after the Declaration that he died?

>> Jeff: very shortly.

>> Rick Green: No kidding.

>> Jeff: Okay, so he got. No, he died shortly after the. After the, Constitution.

>> Rick Green: So, so, so back up a second because, you, you, you caught me at the 27 years in a row. That's amazing. So you guys have already been doing the actual reading of the Declaration on the birthday of the Declaration? Not many people do that. And I've been trying to get everybody to do it this year, but y' all been doing it for 20. You were way ahead of me. Y' all been doing it 27 years.

>> Jeff: Yeah.

>> Jeff: The Daughters of the American Revolution, local chapter is called the Tea Party chapter because it is the group of ladies who in 1774, organized a tea party and signed a notice to King George that they were not going to buy tea or any other British goods because they thought that he was a tyrant.

>> Rick Green: Wow.

>> Jeff: Okay.

>> Rick Green: And this, this is. And. And they were from North Carolina.

>> Jeff: Oh, yeah.

>> Jeff: They all lived in Edenton.

>> Rick Green: Now is this where the. Where were the. There was the Mecklenburg. what did they call that?

>> Jeff: That was nearby. Mecklenburg M is not too far from us.

>> Rick Green: Okay.

>> Jeff: But this predated that as well. This was the first, female organized political, demonstration in the colonies.

>> Rick Green: Cool, cool, cool, cool.

27 years reading the Declaration, did you have a good crowd this year

Okay, so 27 years reading the Declaration. Tell me about the gathering. Like, did y' all have. Was there a pretty good crowd? Did y' all do fireworks and stuff as well? No, it was ten o' clock in the morning. So I guess y'. All, y' all just had the reading and then you marched down to where the cannons were.

>> Jeff: well, yes, actually, that. That is what happened. But, before the reading, we had a, gathering on the green there. they did some, interesting stuff Rick getting some of the local folks to train like a militia. That was kind of fun. We got. We got wooden guns handed to us. I remarked that they must have been donated by the North Korean army. but, then it was a very, full, celebration. It started, of course, Rick an invocation and a pledge and singing the dark, spangled Banner.

>> Jeff: Oh, that's good.

>> Jeff: And, we had. This year we had a brass band which was fantastic. This group of about six guys, and they played all stuff from the, 18th century.

>> Rick Green: so cool, so cool.

Jeff Bartons: The Declaration of Independence was read in Edenton this year

All right, man. No, no, go ahead. Sorry, I didn't mean to cut you off.

>> Jeff: We had the head of the historical society in Edenton, which was the capital, of the Carolinas colonies at one point, was in Edenton. And the historian pointed out that one of the reasons that we were doing this in front of that courthouse is. And he said, pointing at a window, he said from that window right there, the first copy of the Declaration of Independence that made it Back to Edenton was read aloud to the entire town.

>> Rick Green: So, wow, man.

>> Jeff: They've been there a long time. But, anyway, it's just such a historic place. And, then the whole day was full of all kinds of things and big fireworks at night, of course. But, the Declaration was read by a retired senator. did a wonderful job. Two years ago, the lady who was, asked to do the reading decided instead she would just memorize the whole thing. And she did it from memory.

>> Rick Green: Oh, that's great. I love it. I had one of my students do that last year. He, recited the whole thing. I did most of it this year, but then I had the, scholars and some of the guests do all the grievances. That was great. We had them do them one by one. I'm gonna have to go to, break here, Jeff. But I was just looking up, so. Yeah, in fact, Joseph Hughes, secured the commission for Jon Paul Jones to be in the Navy. he presented North Carolina's Halifax, resolve to Congress in May of 76. He is the only signer of the Declaration to die at the seat of government in Philadelphia at the age of 49, in 1779. And I guess I can't tell. It says the funeral was at Christchurch. There. I've been there and seen some of. I think Franklin and some others are buried there. I don't know if he's buried there. They probably took him home to North Carolina, but. Wow, what a. What a cool signer of the Declaration that we rarely talk about. Joseph Hughes of North Carolina. I'm so glad you called in, Jeff. Really, really good stuff, man. God bless you.

>> Jeff: Thanks for what you do.

>> Rick Green: Have another great celebration next year.

>> Jeff: We will. All right.

>> Rick Green: Thank you. That's Jeff from North Carolina. What a cool story. Joseph Hughes. You know, we should tell each of these stories. I know the Bartons had David Tim have a new book out called Life's Forge and Sacred Honor, and it's, it's about each of the 56. So I'm anxious to read that chapter on Joseph Hughes now. As soon as I get my hands on a copy. They keep selling out, man. It's. It's out on Amazon, I think. They've only got it restocked, but you can get [email protected] as well.

Preborn network clinics offer free ultrasounds to women facing unplanned pregnancies

Quick break. I'm Rick Green, America's Constitution coach. You're listening to at the COR.

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>>  : this is at the The Core on American Family Radio Rick your host, Rick Green.

Rick Green: Whatever you did last weekend, I hope it was big

>> Rick Green: Welcome back to that's The Core with Walker Wildmon and Rick Green. RICK Green, America's Constitution Coach we are celebrating the 250th birthday of our nation and celebrating how we celebrate it. So, in other words, whatever you did last weekend, I hope it was big. I hope you had a blast. I hope, it cemented in people's minds, in your family and your church, in your community, just how blessed we are to live in this nation. I hope you did something special. Hope you read the Declaration of Independence out loud. And, most of all, that you were just grateful to the Lord for an amazing nation we live in and that people rededicated themselves to preserving it for the next generation. We'd love to hear your story of what you did last Saturday. Phone number is 8885-8988-4088-8589, 8840. And maybe even what you have planned for during the next year leading up to the July 4th celebration next year in 2027. What are you going to be doing to help preserve liberty? What are you going to do to give up your life, your fortune, your sacred honor? I suggest signing [email protected] to be a constitution coach and starting to teach what it is that we're actually celebrating. You don't have to know anything about any of this stuff you just hit, you know, hit play. Let the videos do the teaching Rick myself, Tim Barton, David Barton, Charlie Kirk, Rabbi Daniel Lapp, and all kinds of other folks teaching in those courses. They are entertaining, educational, empowering, and inspiring, and it'll make people want to be a part of the solution. Okay, let's find out what other people were doing last Saturday for the celebration.

Steve, in Texas, what'd you do for July 4th

back to Texas. Steve, in Texas, what'd you do for July 4th?

>> Steve: well, the main thing is I went to hear Alex McFarland preach at Calvary Baptist Church here in San Antelope.

>> Rick Green: Not in San Angelo. Alex was in San Angelo? Are you kidding me?

>> Steve: Well, there's a pastor for, for Calvary Baptist Church. A little piano playing, picture of pistol of a pastor named Bobby Rogers that somehow got him here.

>> Rick Green: Nice.

>> Jeff: And, he is an amazing scholar. Obviously, we listen to him.

>> Rick Green: Oh, that's a blessing, man. If you had Alex there, that's fantastic. You got. You guys must have had a phenomenal certain that. Did he come in and do something Rick y' all on Saturday first, or was he just there for the Sunday morning services now?

>> Jeff: Yes, they had an event at, one of our. At our indoor, rodeo arena here.

>> Rick Green: Nice.

>> Jeff: And, you know, you know, just the full deal. You know, the declaration and the constitution and all that. But he is an amazing pastor. I mean, powerful, powerful power.

>> Rick Green: That is great. I. I love it.

>> Jeff: I think he felt it for Todd Herman. So he's obviously, He's, It was. I've listened to him, and it was just, It was just an unbelievable sermon about what he presented to try to get people warmed up. You know, we have the flags and, you know, they do the fireworks and this and that. But he took it a different level.

>> Rick Green: That's great. I love it. No, he's. He's fantastic. And that's, That's my old stomping ground. Steve, I don't know if you knew that I lived in San Angelo for a few years, Went to school at, Angelo State University there.

>> Jeff: Oh, well, yes, you're absolutely great. You know, that's what. That's what moved you on. When did you graduate?

>> Rick Green: I graduated from angelo State in 91, so I did. I love San Angelo, by the way. Back to. How long you been there?

>> Jeff: well, 70 years.

>> Rick Green: Oh, goodness. Okay, well, so you definitely remember then. I loved Zentner's daughter, Little Henry's Mayhore Kanatas. Oh, man, the food in San Angelo was fantastic. I, Last few times I've Been through there. I think all of those places are maybe Little Henry still there, but I think Mayor Kanada's is gone and I know Zentner's daughter's gone, but all that

>> Jeff: stuff's kind of drifted off. But can you probably realize that Ronnie, General Ronnie Hawkins, who, grad or retired as a three star Rick the Air Force, is now the president of asu?

>> Rick Green: I did not know that.

>> Jeff: And I was involved in local politics here for 31 years and we shared a lot and met him before that deep, deep, deep Christian man. He has, a ministry in Haiti.

>> Rick Green: Wow.

>> Jeff: And so anyway, it's a. Oh, I'm

>> Rick Green: thrilled to hear that. I'm thrilled to hear. Yeah, I had, I had a few run ins Rick the president of the university when I was there. I ran the College Republican Club, and. And, I had some complaints about all the scholarship money being given to Middle Eastern students that were, not exactly assimilating to, So I've been on this bandwagon on immigration for about 35 years. but, man, I do miss San Angelo. I mean, Concho River. I used to ski out at Nazworthy. I mean, that was just a wonderful, wonderful place. And it's a great. I mean, West Texas people don't realize West Texas, that's the America that we think of when we think red, white and blue America. You know, a lot of Texas has gone. You know, Austin, San Antonio, Dallas, you know, gone, the wrong way. But, I love West Texas and, I think it's the backbone of our country. So God bless you for calling in and, tell your pastor I'd love to come out sometime and speak. I'd love an excuse to come back to San Angelo.

>> Jeff: he's probably listened to this. So anyway, I hope he's not embarrassed about me talking about him being a little pistol, but he is.

>> Rick Green: I think that's great, man. We need more like him.

>> Jeff: And I'll close Rick this. Evidently you made an impression on what was going on because there was a couple of local people that, became president out there at asu and it totally changed their focus. Now I've got the Kate Bailey Hutchinson center for Cybersecurity. And all of this things going on Rick Goodfellow, Air Force Base and, General Ronnie Hawkins is. Had a amazing impact on this. So anyway, I think you'd be proud of your alma mater.

>> Rick Green: Oh, that's great. That's great to hear, man. I know when, when I was in the Texas House, Rob Janelle Was still chair of appropriations back. Oh, and I remember we get. The Janelle center got built, after I left, I was already, you know, out of school there, so there was so many, you know, beautiful buildings that were added after I was gone. But, But, man.

Steve Floyd was a JP and then a commissioner in San Angelo

Yeah, that's. That's. That's great. Good news. And I remember there was. There was a couple years after that was, A couple of years. I should say 20 years after that. There was, There was a pretty strong tea party there in San Angelo. And. And, Pretty. Pretty. Pretty good Republican club. I cut my teeth there, Steve. That's where. I mean, the first doors I knocked on were for. Oh, what was the guy's name? That was JP And a commissioner candidate that I knocked on a ton of door. That's how I learned to campaign was right there in San Angelo. I, think I lost you.

>> Jeff: You didn't knock on doors for me. That's how I started. Was a JP and then I became a commissioner.

>> Rick Green: But wait, what's your last name?

>> Jeff: Floyd.

>> Rick Green: Steve Floyd. Man, that sounds familiar. When'd you. When did you first go in?

>> Jeff: 91.

>> Rick Green: Oh, my goodness. I bet I was knocking on doors for you. Wow.

>> Jeff: And I finished up, at the end of 2022 as the county judge, so.

>> Rick Green: Oh, my goodness.

>> Jeff: but, anyway. No, it is just, We would love to have you back. I think you would be quite pleased Rick what's going on here, and, I'm proud of my community. I really am. And there's. There's parts of it, America that I, you know, I'm getting a little concerned about, you know, Lord, have you. If you got this, or you do you really have this? And, you know, he's kind of telling me, yeah, I got it. You just relax a little bit.

>> Rick Green: He does now. Don't relax. We got to press the gas, man. This is our Chance in the 250th to really restore those principles. But. But you're exactly right. He's got it. Duty is ours. Results are God's.

>> Caroline: No.

>> Rick Green: No doubt about it, Steve. God bless you, man. You made my day calling in.

>> Jeff: You bet. And we will get you to San Angelo, I promise you.

>> Rick Green: You got it? I'd love it. I'd love it. Do you have a good one?

>> Jeff: Thanks.

Steve Perry spent formative years in college in San Angelo, Texas

>> Rick Green: That's just crazy, folks. First I get a call from where I was born and spent the first nine years of my life, literally a half mile down the road. and then from San Angelo, where I spent my formative years in college and really Learned, in fact. Here I'll tell you the rest of the story to the audience, but if you want to call in, tell us your, Your July, fourth story, I'd still love to hear from you. 888-589-8840. but in San Angelo. So I got there, I'd already been doing some college classes while I was in high school and I knew I wanted to try to get out of college quick. So I actually graduated high school in 89. And I finished my, four year, Bachelor's of Finance in just two years by taking about 30 hours a semester. But I still had a blast. I still enjoyed San Angelo a lot. And that's where I started my, you know, literally cutting my teeth in politics. But when Desert Storm happened, so, President Bush was in office, Bush 41, and you know, the whole Kuwait thing, Iraq going into Kuwait and Desert Storm happens. And a bunch of my buddies were, in the military and they were, you know, headed over there to fight. And I remember sitting around Rick the guys that I had started the college Republican Club Rick going, what can we do? What can we do? We got to do something to honor these guys. And we just felt like, you know, man, we're just sitting on our thumbs going to class, whatever, and we're not, you know, getting to go fight and be a, part of the solution. And so we said, well, we'll have a candlelight vigil on campus. And so we put together this big event on campus. You know, several hundred people came out, had a candlelight visual. It was the first speech I ever gave, first public speech I ever gave. And when the speech was over and the event was over, all these moms of these friends of ours that were over there fighting came up in tears, thanking me for putting on this event and for, for, for my speech. And it was, it was God's, you know, I, I think it was God's way of, of telling me, this is what you're supposed to do. This is what, this is the gift I'm going to give you. And and, and so I, I, man, after that we, we put together a big march from the campus all the way to the courthouse steps. I forget how many miles it was, but we had thousands of people and flags and signs and everything else. It was huge. And I didn't go to class for those three weeks, man. We just did nothing but work on doing that event. And so the take home message for me was, hey, if you skip class and actually go do Something that matters. You can make a difference. Okay? That's not the best message to give to everybody I know, especially for the college people out there. But for me, it was definitely formative. I mean, it was such a formative time. And, it did. It became, what I would ultimately do, you know, to make a difference. I mean, that's where I'm in my Rick Liddell sweet spot. So I call it the Rick Liddell sweet spot. Because he was the guy from Chariots of Fire who said, God made me fast. And when I run, I feel God's pleasure. Well, folks, when I run, I don't feel anybody's pleasure. Not God's, not mine, nobody's. That is not my sweet spot. That's not what God made me to do. But when I'm speaking, when I'm doing a presentation, when I'm. When I'm talking about the history of this country or I'm challenging people to do the most Rick Rick what they've been given, when I'm challenging them to give of their life, their fortune, their sacred honor, to pass this torch to the next generation, I feel God's pleasure. When I'm teaching young people especially, and I see their eyes light up, and I see the inspiration and the.

>> Jeff: And the.

>> Rick Green: And the, desire to make a difference, to not just be somebody, but to do something. I feel God's pleasure. And it all started right there in San Angelo. It started, right there on the ASU campus giving that speech that night of that candlelight vigil and then. And then doing that, doing that march to the. To the. To the courthouse step.

>> Jeff: So.

>> Rick Green: Wow. Steve, thanks for taking me down memory lane today. appreciate your call very much. Others, call in and let me know what you did on July 4th. We got a few minutes left. 888-589-8840. And Pat is up next in North Carolina. Back to North Carolina. All right, Pat, go ahead.

>> Pat: Hey, I just got in back from Philadelphia. I hope my phone doesn't die. I don't know what I do Rick my charger.

>> Rick Green: Let's give it a shot.

>> Pat: Okay. My family, came from, Ireland in around 1802. This is part of it. I forgot to say my, one of the, children that was, well, got kidnapped. They have an exciting, crazy history. But, anyway, we celebrated our, 50th reunion on, July 4th this year. And, we have been doing the sites. my parents took us down there and told us the history for Many years, you know? And, it's just very exciting to be able to say that I'm from there and how much that, you know, we've appreciated it. And, anyway, that's pretty much,

>> Rick Green: Did you go. Did you go back to Philadelphia for the celebration last weekend, or did y' all celebrate in North Carolina?

>> Pat: Oh, we. We celebrate every year now. We're. We celebrate northwest of Philly in a big area. I mean, I'm from one of 15 children, so, we get together. We've been doing. Getting together for 50 years. Wow.

>> Rick Green: When you say northwest of Philly, are you talking, like, King of Prussia area or valley? Fort area? Where were you?

>> Pat: kind of out rural. Near Allentown.

>> Rick Green: Yeah. Yeah.

>> Pat: Okay. I took my kids in. We took the subway to the train, and then we went in town and saw the sites. Just the, Just this past week.

>> Rick Green: I love it. I love it. Well, I was just out there in. In April, I took our scholars to Washington, D.C. and to Philly, and we had Independence hall to ourselves one night for three hours and got to sign the decoration there. But we also got to go to the Black Powder Tavern there, at Valley Forge. And, and we had a special meal there, so there's just so much history there. What an amazing way to celebrate the two.

>> Pat: Where was the t. What's the tavern that they used to meet after they would get together, and I heard it was very hot, so they had to shut the windows.

>> Rick Green: Yes, they did.

>> Pat: At. At. At.

>> Rick Green: At Independence Hall. And then there was City Tavern, was right down the road from the area, which just shut down during COVID It was one of the. One of the casualties of COVID I hated seeing that go. My. My. In fact, we had the celebration for my, My. My son and his, his wife for their engagement. They got engaged. He asked her to marry him in Independence Hall. It was pretty cool that. I'm out of time. They're about to cut me off. Thank you so much for calling in. What a cool way to celebrate. Of course, you know, doing the 250th in Philadelphia. I mean, that. That's. That's hard to top. To actually get to go back to where. Where it all started, both the Declaration and the Constitution done right there in that room in the assembly room of Independence Hall. That's why we're building Independence hall at the Patriot Academy campus in Constitution City, Texas. Because there's just. No. There's no better way to capture what America is all about than to stand in the room to sign the declaration to talk about what they debated and how they came to the conclusions they did. And then, you know, not only in 1776 Rick the Declaration, but then fast forward 11 years to the Constitution. So that's why we're going to build that right here on the Patriot Academy campus. And folks can come from all over the country to study those things right here at our campus and then go back home and start a brush fire of liberty in their community. And I'm going to challenge you to do the same thing. Don't stop celebrating just because the fireworks have fizzled. Teach the Constitution to the people in your life. Teach the Declaration of Independence to the people in your life. You can become a [email protected] out of time for today. Walker will be back Rick you tomorrow. You're listening to at the The Core with Walker Wildmon and Rick Green

>>  : The views and opinions expressed in this broadcast may not necessarily reflect those of the American Family association or American Family Radio.

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