The World Cup is finally here!
Not just “here” as in the time has arrived.
I mean here, in The United States.
I’ve absolutely loved watching fans from all over the world experience America for the first time.
I’ve watched reaction videos of people trying American barbecue, wandering through Walmart like it’s an amusement park, visiting our National Parks, and discovering just how kind ordinary Americans really are.
But guess what? The most awe inspiring moment so far wasn’t even a soccer match.
It was The Star-Spangled Banner.
Did you watch the opening ceremony?
Goosebumps.
⚡️ F5 Fast Files - Short Summary
🇺🇸 Sometimes it takes an outsider to remind us what we have.
⭐ Great movements begin with ordinary men.
🙏 Freedom requires both courage and Providence.
🔥 What has God asked you to build?
📣 Shoutout to Ethan for sharing the story that changed the way I see the constitution!
⚽ America through someone else’s eyes
Watching thousands of people from dozens of nations stand together while our anthem echoed across the stadium gave me chills.
And then I started watching the reaction videos afterward.
People were speechless.
Not because America is perfect, but because the America they experienced looked very different from the America they expected.
Most of the world only sees Hollywood, Wall Street, Washington D.C., and whatever outrage happens to dominate the news cycle that day. They rarely get to meet the American people.
Watching visitors discover that difference reminded me how grateful I am to call this place home.
Especially as we celebrate 250 years as a free nation.
⭐ Why “Founding Fathers”?
I’ve been thinking about that title this week: Founding Fathers.
Not Founding Kings. Not Founding Legends. Not Founding Superheroes.
Fathers.
Regular men
Flawed men
Men who argued
Men who disagreed
Ultimately, men who sacrificed because they believed what they were building was bigger than themselves.
Critics love pointing out the imperfections of historical figures. Of course they weren’t perfect! Neither am I. Neither are you.
The miracle of America is that ordinary men answered an extraordinary calling.
Sound familiar?
It’s exactly what fathers still do today.
They answer the call to build:
Families
Businesses
Brotherhoods
Communities
Movements
🙏 The Real Founder
Look, I’m no historian, so you won’t find a very thorough recap of the last 250 years here, but the more I learn about American history the harder it becomes for me to separate the courage of these men from the providence of God.
Scripture teaches that this land was preserved for a divine purpose.
Our history is filled with stories of impossible victories, unlikely timing, unexpected provision, and people who believed God had a hand in what they were doing. One story especially captured my attention.
During the Constitutional Convention of 1787, the delegates were deadlocked.
Tempers were flaring and many wondered whether the entire effort would collapse before the Constitution was ever written.
That’s when 81-year-old Benjamin Franklin slowly stood.
He had spoken very little during the Convention.
After a reminder to General Washington and others of their divine deliverance, he asked:
“How has it happened… that we have not hitherto once thought of humbly applying to the Father of Lights to illuminate our understanding?”
Franklin reminded them that during the Revolutionary War they had fasted and prayed together. If God had answered those prayers then, why wouldn’t they seek His help again now?
He then closed with this powerful statement:
“The longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth—that God governs in the affairs of men.”
🎆 Happy Independence Day
As we celebrate 250 years of freedom…
I’m grateful for the men who had the courage to act.
I’m even more grateful for the God who prepared the way before them.
“Blest with vict’ry and peace, may the Heav’n rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: ‘In God is our trust.’”
The next great movement probably won’t happen in independence hall.
It’ll begin around someone’s dinner table.
Let’s be the kind of men who build something worthy of the generations that follow.
Happy Independence Day, brothers.
Oh, and Let’s Go Team USA!!!
Justin
F5 Brotherhood
👇 If this newsletter encouraged you, share it with another brother this Independence Day. 🇺🇸
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