Welcome to the USA

A Welcome to the United States


Hello! Welcome to the United States of America.

I would like to tell you how this country started, and eventually became the United States of America.

The first people to live in this land were migratory people who had come into this land from
various areas of Asia. There were a number of groups of them and they sometimes warred with each
other. These people are often referred to as Native Americans or American Indians. They were mostly
hunters and gatherers, and lived off of the land.

The first European people to come into this land came here because of religious difficulties that had
developed in the countries they had been living in. The governments of the various countries they were living in had taken authority over the religious systems and would not allow groups of people to live according to their Christian beliefs. Some of these people decided to leave their homelands and come to this land where they would be free to live according to their religious beliefs.

People came from several different countries. Their cultures were different, and they had some differences in the way they lived out their Christian beliefs. But they all used the Christian Bible as
their guidebook. These people lived on the eastern side of this new land called America, in different locations. Eventually there were thirteen different groups, each in their own area. Each separate area was called a “colony,” and each of them had their own leadership. They were all different and independent from each other, but they were all under British control.

God blessed these people because they wanted to honor God and desired to live according to the teachings found in the Bible. The laws in all of these colonies were based on Christian beliefs, which had a good effect on the people. Even people who were not practicing their Christian beliefs very strongly appreciated these moral laws.

When educational systems were developed in each colony, they included teaching from the Bible.
Religious and moral values were taught along with the regular subjects such as reading, writing and
mathematics. The colleges and universities were also Bible-based, and insisted on good moral values
while the students gained their education. Anyone who was educated had a good knowledge of the Bible and its teachings.

The first Christians who came into this land were very dedicated to their Christian beliefs. As time went on and life became easier, the descendants of these people lost some of their commitment to their
Christian beliefs. Also, more and more people were coming into this land solely for economic reasons.

As time continued on, more and more people lost their focus on living according to the values and goals taught in the Bible. There was a need for returning to real Christian living. Forty years prior to the actual birth of the nation, that would become known as the United States of America, God moved in the lives of a number of different preachers, who went throughout England and the colonies calling people to turn away from the immoral practices they were developing and turn back to real Christian living. Many people responded to their preaching.

That period of time became known as the Great Awakening, or is sometimes referred to as the First
Great Awakening. Because this happened in all of the colonies at about the same time, it had a uniting
effect on these thirteen separate colonies. This actually made it easier for the thirteen colonies to unite
together, when they were forced into war with the British. When the British put heaver restrictions on these thirteen colonies, representatives of each of the colonies came together and decided to declare their independence from England. The colonies would no longer be colonies of England, but would become independent states. And because they were uniting together they would be called the United States of America. As a result of this they wrote and signed the Declaration of Independence. This was on July fourth, 1776.

After these thirteen states united together, they had to be very careful how they worded their governing
document (the Constitution). They wanted each of the states to continue to govern itself and remain free and have religious freedom, so they made restrictions on the new federal government so it would not get involved in the individual states' decisions or religious beliefs, or restrict or change their individual religious practices.

This was over two hundred years ago, and much has changed in the United States of America since then. Now there are fifty states. Each of the states still has its own government, but the federal government has become stronger and has taken control of more and more things. The federal
government has actually interfered with some of the religious freedoms the states once had. And once again the people living here have become very weak in following Christian practices. Many people have become more concerned about the economy than the moral values taught in the Bible.

Many more people have migrated into the United States of America. Now there are people living here
from many different religions. Most of them are not familiar with the true teachings of Christianity.
They are often shocked and confused by many of the immoral things they see happening here in
America. These people may not realize that real Christians are also very sad and concerned about the
moral breakdown taking place in this land.

While you are free to practice the religion of your choice here in this land, I hope you will take some time to listen to these Bible stories (that are made for people who speak English as a second language). You will hear some important things that the Bible teaches about how we should live with others.

Many of these Bible stories are also available in other languages from countries all over the world. They are available to listen to free of charge on our website www.globalrecordings.net or on our phone app called “5fish.” Some of these stories could have been recorded recently and are of very high technical quality. Others of these stories may have been recorded many years ago and the technical quality is not as high as it is today, although the stories themselves are still very good. The stories were usually recorded in the country where this language was originally spoken. It was made for the average person, not necessarily for the wealthy or highly-educated. Jesus lived and taught among the common people and usually told His stories to common people. Most common people who heard Him, loved Him. Though He spoke mostly to common people, His message became known and loved by people of all classes all over the world.

I hope that you will be able to listen to the stories from your homeland (or the other stories in English that were made for people who speak English as a second language.) If you look at our website and do not find Bible stories in your language, and would like to help us to put these stories into your language, please contact our office through our website.

And once again, welcome to the United States of America.