This same helper asked the teacher if she could tell about the other God-Connection that she had found in Washington DC. The teacher gave her permission to continue.
The second God-Connection that she had found is the Lincoln Memorial. The Lincoln Memorial is close to the Washington Monument, the reflection pool is between them.
In this open building there is a statue of Abraham Lincoln sitting on a chair.
The statue is 19 feet tall, and if Lincoln was standing he would be around 28 feet tall! The statue is made out of marble and weighs 175 tons!
Abraham Lincoln is mostly remembered as the President who freed the slaves and was shot while he was at a theatre, but there is much more to Lincoln’s story. Lincoln was born in Kentucky in a log cabin that has been described as ‘a hunter’s hut not fit to be called a home’. Kentucky was a state that allowed slavery, but the Lincoln family did not have slaves, and young Abraham developed compassion for those kept in slavery. When Lincoln was seven years old his family moved to Indiana, and eventually to Illinois (states that did not allow slavery). Young Abraham loved to debate with the other children, and this helped him to develop his ability to speak publicly and debate. One of his favorite topics was; ‘who has the greater right to complain, the slaves or the Indians’.
Lincoln was educated at home; his mother taught him to read and gave him a passion to read books and learn. As a young boy Abraham read many books, some of them very difficult books, and he mastered them! As a young man Lincoln decided that he wanted to learn law, but could not go to school, so he read books and taught himself so well that he passed the Bar Examination and became a lawyer in Illinois. He had such a good understanding of the law that he argued many cases before the Illinois Supreme Court.
Abraham Lincoln was very determined in everything that he did. Not only did he educate himself as well as anyone who went to college, but he was also a hard worker. His job was to split logs into fence rails, and he became so good at this job that he could split 400 rails in one day! He earned 25 cents a day!
Compassion and determination were two of the main qualities of Abraham Lincoln. He became President of the United States when the nation was divided over the issue of slavery! Mr. Lincoln guided the northern part of the country through the civil war with his determination, based on the compassion that he had toward those who were slaves. The people who designed the Lincoln Memorial wanted everyone to remember Lincoln’s determination and compassion. When the statue of Lincoln was made, his two hands are different: “One of the president’s hands is clenched, representing his strength and determination to see the war through to a successful conclusion. The other hand is a more open, slightly more relaxed hand representing his compassionate, warm nature.”
Application for you and me:
Abraham Lincoln had another great quality; that quality was humbleness. The helper told the teacher that she found the God-Connection in Mr. Lincoln’s humbleness. Even though he had great determination, and great compassion, even though he had self-educated himself, and become the President of the United States, and led this country through the civil war, and freed the slaves, and had great plans to reunite the country; he still realized that he could not have done any of this by himself! Abraham Lincoln knew that all his abilities to learn, to lead people, to have compassion on people, to be a persuasive speaker, and all his other abilities all came from God! Abraham Lincoln never forgot that every good thing comes from God and he believed that we should always acknowledge God and give thanks for His blessings!
Before Mr. Lincoln became President, this country celebrated a day of Thanksgiving on occasion, but it was not consistent! President Lincoln decided that we should have a set national holiday of Thanksgiving on the last Thursday in the month of November.
On October 20, 1864, President Lincoln wrote a proclamation establishing the Thanksgiving Holiday. In the second paragraph he said:
“Now, therefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States, do hereby appoint and set apart the last Thursday in November next as a day which I desire to be observed by all my fellow-citizens, wherever they may then be, as a day of thanksgiving and praise to Almighty God, the beneficent Creator and Ruler of the Universe. And I do further recommend to my fellow-citizens aforesaid that on that occasion they do reverently humble themselves in the dust and from thence offer up penitent and fervent prayers and supplications to the Great Disposer of Events for a return of the inestimable blessings of peace, union, and harmony throughout the land which it has pleased Him to assign as a dwelling place for ourselves and for our posterity throughout all generations.”
President Lincoln never forgot that God had guided him throughout his life, and he could not have accomplished any good thing without the help of God!
In the Bible in Psalms 100:4-5 it says:
Enter His gates with thanksgiving; go into His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and His faithfulness continues to each generation.
In the Bible in Psalms 103:1-5 it says:
Let all that I am praise the Lord; with my whole heart, I will praise His holy name. Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things He does for me. He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies. He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
In the Bible in I Thessalonians 5:18 it says:
Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.
We should be like President Lincoln and always remain humble and remember to give thanks to God for all that He does for us and helps us to do for others.