I grew up in a military household decked out year-round with Americana. USA patriotism pervaded my house growing up. I was (and still am) proud of my dad’s service to the country and extremely proud to be an American. However, presently, I live in a world of academics in the humanities who don’t have a lot of appreciation for the nation we live in. Instead, they spend much of their time decrying America’s many sins. It is a weird juxtaposition of my worlds. On the one hand, my academic experience has allowed me to be somewhat more critical of my nation, which I think is healthy to a degree. On the other hand, I am annoyed by the constant degrading of America, because it is neither healthy nor fair, and some of the criticisms of the United States that come from academia are not always grounded in the reality of everyday American people outside of the academic bubble.

Sure, America is not perfect. Our history is messy. But so too is the history of humanity. That fallen, flawed people have lived fallen, flawed lives and have led fallen, flawed nations should not be a surprise to anyone. America has never been perfect. My mom, who is the greatest George Washington fan in all of America’s 250-year history, recently shared with me about a George Washington book she was reading. She observed that America was a mess from the beginning, polarized in a way that Washington warned against and wanted to avoid. The USA has been trying—and failing—from the start. It is yet another example from our history of how human nature sabotages good intentions as well as permits sin, such as slavery and greed, to last far too long. Even today, I admit that some aspects of our society could be better. Greed and corruption still exist, and we are still politically polarized. (I won’t say we’re more polarized than ever today; I think an examination of our brief history as a nation would quickly prove that wrong.) However, the sins and issues of our nation are not uniquely American problems: they are problems of the human condition in a fallen world and our need for a Savior to redeem and restore all things.

And yet, for all our issues, the United States of America is still a beautiful place to live. She has been a land of opportunity for many. I find it odd to think that America can be so “evil” and “oppressive” yet still attract so many around the world who seek opportunities here. America is a land of blessing, with so much prosperity enabling radical generosity. America is a land of freedom. It is a gift to read our Bibles and worship without fear in this nation, a privilege so many around the world do not have. America is a land of incredible diversity, too, both in terms of ideologies and in terms of ethnicity. There are many aspects of this nation worthy of celebrating and appreciating.

And that, I think, is part of what we need more of in the United States these days: gratitude for our nation. Lately, in my personal life, I’ve been convicted of my own ingratitude and realized that there is a direct correlation between complaining and discontentment. In thinking about the messaging around the United States, specifically within the academic circles I spend so much time in, I’ve come to the conclusion that focusing solely on what America gets wrong only feeds into the rising sense of discontentment and disdain for the USA. Ingratitude and denigrating only serves to reinforce the idea that America is the worst, which is simply not true. That’s not to say we should shift the pendulum the other way and excessively idealize the United States. In fact, I would advise against that: the USA is not worthy of worship; only God is. And God is the reason America has prospered, and He will be the reason if America continues to prosper. I simply think that gratitude for America’s beauty, for the things it does well, for the opportunities this nation affords would go a long way in producing contentment and appreciation for our nation. We need nuance. We need patriotism that stirs us to unity. And I believe we can find that through gratitude.

America will never beperfect. As Christians know, this world is not our home. Our ultimate hope is not in the United States of America. That being said, I absolutely think we could stand to start advocating for changes, for continuing to improve as a nation, from a place of gratitude, rather than stomping on the blessings afforded to us in this nation. Perhaps gratitude could be a way to find common ground in our ideologically diverse society too. Perhaps reflecting on gratitude for the United States could be a valuable way to celebrate or mark July 4^th this year, on our 250^th.

What a beautiful nation to live in. How I love to be an American. Not because it’s perfect, but because it is God’s blessing to me and my family and my fellow countrymen.

Happy birthday, USA. Here’s to 250 years.