I have always been fascinated by words. Etymology, the study of the origin and history of words, is one of my special interests. When preparing to preach, I still exercise my elementary Hebrew or Greek skills acquired in seminary to exegete a biblical text. What sparked my interest in the science of language? Maybe it was because I had a serious speech impediment as a child, or because my mother always prided herself on being the spelling bee champion of her elementary school, or because Latin was my favorite subject in high school and college. Words carry such power and meaning. The Bible reminds us that “a word spoken at the right time is like gold apples in silver settings” (Proverbs 25:11).
One of my mentors advised me to always keep a dictionary next to my Bible because it is an essential tool for studying God’s Word. I recommend Noah Webster’s 1828 edition of American Dictionary of the English Language, which contains 70,000 words and over 6,000 Bible references. It remains one of the only dictionaries in the world that uses Bible references to explain the root meaning of words.
In 2004, the Oxford University Press in the United Kingdom launched its first “word of the year,” chosen from a list of words being coined or popularized by people in the print media, books, radio shows, and television. The rise of social media communities through platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok has revolutionized the lexicon of our culture. For example, last year’s winning word, rizz (slang term meaning style, charisma, or attractiveness), is an interesting example of how online communities have increasingly formed, shaped, and shared the way in which their meanings have changed throughout history.
I found a word that is currently not listed in a dictionary. It also hasn’t previously been named as a “word of the year.” Maybe it will make the 2026 list. However, you can already see this term being used all over the internet. Semiquincentennial. It means the 250th anniversary of an event. The United States of America will celebrate its semiquincentennial anniversary on July 4, 2026. The President of the United States has already directed the facilitation of nationwide plans and creative ideas on how to commemorate this historic 250th anniversary of the nation.
Chaplains, what are your ministry plans and initiatives to support the United States’ semiquincentennial within the context of your institutional setting? How can you use this special event to advance the gospel of Jesus Christ? How can you use this national observance to help others recognize Almighty God as “King of the Nations” (Jeremiah 10:7) and the Source of our liberties? What impact will this national celebration have on your ministry?
As we look forward to an incredibly historic year ahead of us, I conclude by asking you to keep two important things in prayer.
- Pray that the United States remembers the primary Source of our many blessings and freedoms.
America’s earliest settlers made a covenant with God to serve and proclaim Him throughout the earth. In our country’s founding document, the Declaration of Independence, we appealed to God, “the Supreme Judge of the world” to be an essential part of the American experiment. The Bible reminds us in Deuteronomy 8:11-20 that, if we ever disconnect from our trust in God, our destruction as a nation is certain. - Pray for a spirit of repentance to sweep the nation.
In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln designated April 30 as a day of national humiliation, fasting, and prayer. He said, “It is the duty of nations … who owe their dependence upon the overruling power of God, to confess their sins and transgressions in humble sorrow with assured hope that genuine repentance will lead to mercy and pardon, and to recognize the sublime truth announced in the Holy Scriptures and proven by a history that those nations only are blessed whose God is the Lord. But we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us.” If we truly want to make and keep America great, we must confess our sins as a nation so that God will forgive our sins, heal our land, and continue to bless us as a shining light to the nations.
Chaplains, it is my sincere hope that you faithfully take advantage of the United States’ semiquincentennial to help draw those under your pastoral care back not only to our historical roots but, more importantly, back to our moral and religious roots as well. The Word of God says, “Happy is the nation whose God is the Lord—the people he has chosen to be his own possession” (Psalm 33:12)!