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Think about the Struggles you have in your life then think of the VOLUNTEERS that believed in what our Nation could be sacrificing their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor for us to have FREEDOM! Amazing Men and Families supporting them! Curious about the price 56 signers of the Declaration Of Independence paid so their Children & Grandchildren could grow up in a FREE country ? The Declaration of Independence When the 56 Signers of The Declaration of Independence attached their signatures to that document, each knew they were committing treason against the British Crowne. If caught and captured, they risked death. But death would not be swift. It would be by hanging to the point of unconsciousness, then being revived, disemboweled, their body parts boiled in oil and their ashes scattered into the wind. Our Founding Fathers valued freedom, for themselves and their posterity, to the extent that they found this fate worth the risk. The story below tells what happened to the men who signed the Declaration of Independence. Five signers were captured by the British and brutally tortured as traitors. Nine fought in the War for Independence and died from wounds or from hardships they suffered. Two lost their sons in the Continental Army. Another two had sons captured. At least a dozen of the fifty-six had their homes pillaged and burned. In the face of the advancing British Army, the Continental Congress fled from Philadelphia to Baltimore on December 12, 1776. It was an especially anxious time for John Hancock, the President, as his wife had just given birth to a baby girl. Due to the complications stemming from the trip to Baltimore, the child lived only a few months. William Ellery’s signing at the risk of his fortune proved only too realistic. In December 1776, during three days of British occupation of Newport, Rhode Island, Ellery’s house was burned, and all his property destroyed. Richard Stockton, a New Jersey State Supreme Court Justice, had rushed back to his estate near Princeton after signing the Declaration of Independence to find that his wife and children were living like refugees with friends. They had been betrayed by a Tory sympathizer who also revealed Stockton’s own whereabouts. British troops pulled him from his bed one night, beat him and threw him in jail where he almost starved to death. When he was finally released, he went home to find his estate had been looted, his possessions burned, and his horses stolen. Judge Stockton had been so badly treated in prison Carter Braxton was a wealthy planter and trader. One by one his ships were captured by the British navy. He loaned a large sum of money to the American cause; it was never paid back. He was forced to sell his plantations and mortgage his other properties to pay his debts. Thomas McKean was so hounded by the British that he had to move his family almost constantly. He served in the Continental Congress without pay, and kept his family in hiding. Vandals or soldiers or both looted the properties of Clymer, Hall, Harrison, Hopkinson and Livingston. Seventeen lost everything they owned. Thomas Heyward, Jr., Edward Rutledge and Arthur Middleton, all of South Carolina, were captured by the British during the Charleston Campaign in 1780. They were kept in dungeons at the St. Augustine Prison until exchanged a year later. At the Battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson, Jr. noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the family home for his headquarters. Nelson urged General George Washington to open fire on his own home. This was done, and the home was destroyed. Nelson later died bankrupt. Francis Lewis also had his home and properties destroyed. The British jailed his wife for two months, and that and other hardships from the war so affected her health that she died only two years later. “Honest John” Hart, a New Jersey farmer, was driven from his wife’s bedside when she was near death. Their thirteen children fled for their lives. Hart’s fields and his grist mill were laid waste. For over a year he eluded capture by hiding in nearby forests. He never knew where his bed would be the next night and often slept in caves. When he finally returned home, he found that his wife had died, his children disappeared, and his farm and stock were completely Such were the stories and sacrifices typical of those who risked everything to sign the Declaration of Independence. These men were not wild-eyed, rabble-rousing ruffians. They were soft-spoken men of means and education. They had security, but they valued liberty more. Standing tall, straight, and unwavering, they pledged: “For the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the Why would we as parents be so cruel to our kids to Not give them a FREE car without earning it in anyway?? Our thought process on this is that Parenting is about preparing our kids for life. In my household, my kids already have so many additional perks in life that we never had. There was a time that I briefly lived in a log cabin with mud in between the logs where you could still see outside, no running water, wood heat (which meant that every sunday we had to cut down trees and split the wood for our woodstove), and of course the awesome outhouse where I tried to wait til daylight cause I didn’t want to step on a snake in the dark! But Mike, both of your kids will have cars at 16. Yep, my first one did and my second child just handed me $1,000 toward her car today. That’s right, They have to earn it. How did they both come up with $1,000? Babysitting, packing flowers for years, working at their jobs and some bday money they had to give up from family members (their choice). The $1,000 is considered 20 points of the 100 points they must acquire. The other 80 points mainly come from reading (5 points a book that I select with book report) and a few charity options. Why Books? Ever wanted your child to read something that could be extremely impactful in their lives? Well our minds are filled with knowledge that are like rudders of a ship. Change your thinking, change your life. There are so many incredible powerful books out there if they just absorb and hold with them a fraction of them, it has the potential to get them through tough times and enhance their lives. You are What You Think, How to Win Friends and Influence People, 10 Distinctions between Millionaires & Middle Class, 10 Distinctions between Winners and Winers, The Alchemist, Balcony People, Slight Edge, Richest Man in Babylon, and Dream Giver are some that are on the list. If you haven’t read these books, then I highly recommend it. One nugget from these can change your life. So, yep, they have to earn their cars from Working hard, giving up some things, and spending time enhancing their knowledge with awesome books that will help them through life. Interesting enough they both will have cars and driving before most of their friends. It gets even worse. Now, my youngest is saving to get her phone fixed because she dropped and cracked the screen. It has been cracked for months and we don’t just run out and buy them new ones. I know, Bummer!! To my girls – I love you with all my heart! Your Mom and I’s goal is to Empower you with as much wisdom as possible. The Bible says, If you don’t work, you don’t eat. I know it may seem unfair at times, but our job isn’t to be fair. Our job is to prepare you for life. My prayer for you is to Get Wisdom. Bible says even if it costs you ALL YOU HAVE, Get Wisdom and Understanding (proverbs 4:7). It will serve you well in life. Ever met a person that you are concerned to say anything around because they might get offended? A few years ago at one of my sales meetings, I told a story about my kids that had a lesson in it for everyone. Later one of the sales reps told me that he felt put down because I was comparing everyone to kids. It was a Generic Story that everybody could learn from! If there was ever a formula for NOT being successful, I believe this would be a Top Ingredient. Yep… Look for ways to be offended. That way you will lose sight off your goal all the time. You can spend the majority of your time upset with others, mad and totally forget your goals. A great verse to think about right before you or I are ready to stick our big lip out, get upset and start a verbal combat with somebody is John 8:7. When Jesus was in the temple courts, The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group 4 and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5 In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” 6 They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him. But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. 7 When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” You see, everybody, including ME and you says the wrong thing, does the wrong thing and acts the wrong way from time to time. Welcome to not being perfect:) American Indian Proverb states, “Never criticize a man until you’ve walked a mile in his moccasins.” Lets try to understand the heart of the individual, that they are a child of God just like you, and maybe they are coming from a difference place. Most likely they don’t intentionally mean to hurt you. And reality if they do, is the goal to get into a fight? Does fighting conquer all or LOVE conquer all? How about a drill? -> Right now visualize you are driving and late to work. All of a sudden this GOOBER DRIVER pulls right in front of you and cuts you off. Say outloud right now, “NO PROBLEM. YOU MUST BE HAVING A ROUGH DAY. I PRAY THAT YOU HAVE A GREAT DAY TODAY!”….. what the heck? Really Mike?? Do you realize how powerful that is! You have turned a NEGATIVE, UPSET situation into a Blessing for somebody! Now Picture EVERY situation in your life doing that! Imagine, really….. just imagine the peace, the blessings, the life you would lead with that type of reaction when something or somebody does you wrong. Got to believe this is a very High Character Trait. Make An Impact In Somebody’s life today!! So proud of Sydni running for Class President. Unfortunately, she didn’t get elected. Well, honey, you are in good company: “I have missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I have lost almost 300 games. On 26 occasions I have been entrusted to take the game winning shot, and I missed. I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” Arguably one of the greatest presidents of all time, Abraham Lincoln’s Story:
-Bill Gates was a Harvard Drop-Out -Steve Jobs was FIRED from Apple originally. He pressed on and they wanted him back. –Mickey Mouse creator Walt Disney dropped out of school at a young age in a failed attempt at joining the army. One of his earlier ventures, Laugh-o-Gram Studios, went bankrupt due to his lack of ability to run a successful business. He was once fired from a Missouri Newspaper for “not being creative enough.” The List goes on and on. It’s taking the shot that counts! You will miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. Press forward and keep taking shots! Love You Girl! -Dad
Here’s another great explanation: A young woman was about to finish her first year of college. Like so many others her age, she considered herself to be a very liberal Democrat, and among other liberal ideals, was very much in favor of higher taxes to support more government programs, in other words, redistribution of wealth. She was deeply ashamed that her father was a rather staunch Republican, a feeling she openly expressed. Based on the lectures that she had participated in, and the occasional chat with a professor, she felt that her father had for years harbored an evil, selfish desire to keep what he thought should be his. One day she was challenging her father on his opposition to higher taxes on the rich and the need for more government programs. The self-professed objectivity proclaimed by her professors had to be the truth and she indicated so to her father. He responded by asking how she was doing in school. Taken aback, she answered rather haughtily that she had a 4.0 GPA, and let him know that it was tough to maintain, insisting that she was taking a very difficult course load and was constantly studying, which left her no time to go out and party like other people she knew. She didn’t even have time for a boyfriend, and didn’t really have many college friends because she spent all her time studying. Her father listened and then asked, ‘How is your friend Audrey doing?’ She replied, ‘Audrey is barely getting by. All she takes are easy classes, she never studies, and she barely has a 2.0 GPA. She is so popular on campus; college for her is a blast. She’s always invited to all the parties and lots of times she doesn’t even show up for classes because she’s too hung over.’ Her wise father asked his daughter, ‘Why don’t you go to the Dean’s office and ask him to deduct 1.0 off your GPA and give it to your friend who only has a 2.0. That way you will both have a 3.0 GPA and certainly that would be a fair and equal distribution of GPA.’ The daughter, visibly shocked by her father’s suggestion, angrily fired back, ‘That’s a crazy idea, how would that be fair! I’ve worked really hard for my grades! I’ve invested a lot of time, and a lot of hard work! Audrey has done next to nothing toward her degree. She played while I worked my tail off!’ The father slowly smiled, winked and said gently, ‘Welcome to the conservative’s philosophy.’ |
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