This Independence Day, Kathy and I traveled to Washington, D.C. to celebrate our country’s 250th anniversary. It was an experience we will never forget — the fireworks near the National Mall, the flybys of aircraft overhead, and the sense of gratitude and patriotism shared by so many people gathered in one place. Two stops on our trip touched our hearts most deeply: the Holocaust Museum and the Museum of the Bible.
The Museum of the Bible, in particular, gave me a history lesson I want to share with you. When you enter the American History section, the very first thing you see is the Mayflower Compact — the covenant forty-one settlers signed aboard ship on November 11, 1620, before ever stepping ashore. It opens with the words “In the name of God, Amen,” and states plainly that the voyage was undertaken “for the Glory of God and advancement of the Christian Faith.” In it, those pilgrims covenanted together “in the presence of God” to form a “Civil Body Politic” — to govern themselves and to enact “just and equal Laws” for the general good of the colony.
Stop and consider what that was: ordinary people, before any government existed over them, voluntarily binding themselves together under God to create their own laws. That little document was essentially the first step toward our Constitution. The idea that government arises from a covenant among the people themselves — not handed down by a king — took root right there in Plymouth Harbor, more than a century and a half before the framers gathered in Philadelphia. From that starting point, the exhibit walks you through how the Bible shaped the formation of our country, step by step.
So much stood out to me, but one thing especially: George Washington required daily prayer of his troops and attendance at divine services — and when no chaplain was available, he read Scripture to them himself. Think about that. In the darkest days of the Revolution, our first commander-in-chief believed his army needed Scripture as much as it needed muskets. The Bible was woven into the founding of our nation — into the constitutions of the original thirteen states and into the principles behind our U.S. Constitution. The pastors of early America were instrumental in guiding its formation, and it is amazing that our nation has stood on that foundation for 250 years, with a Constitution that has endured for nearly two and a half centuries. Bible principles are what have made this country great.
I also want to share a tribute that moved me. Dr. Jordan Peterson, a Canadian who now lives in the States, posted a message to Americans on July 4th. He observed that Americans are different from people anywhere else in the world — that we value success, believe it is possible, and strive for it in a way he has seen nowhere else. He closed with words worth repeating: “Thank God for the United States. Thank God for the wisdom of its founders.” He called America the light of the world and the city on a hill. I believe he is right, and I believe the faith of the American people is a huge part of that exceptionalism.
I know this personally. Our company would not exist without the Bible beliefs and principles we live by every day. It would be so easy to quit — and never succeed — without strong faith and guidance from the Holy Spirit. One of our earliest thoughts when we started this company and the Mixmate project was that we had been gifted with abilities to do something meaningful, and that letting our light shine mattered. We wanted to take the gifts God has given us and use them for the good of farmers, for their safety, and to simplify their lives.
That is why we built Mixmate, and why we remain so passionate about it. Happy 250th birthday, America. May God continue to bless this nation — and the people who feed it.
Be Blessed!
Doug Applegate
Farmer and Co-Founder of Praxidyn
