Lee Greenwood shares faith behind his song “God Bless the USA”

The Lee Greenwood song “God Bless the USA” has become as much of part of the Fourth of July as barbecues and fireworks.

During an interview with CBN’s Studio 5, Greenwood shared details about the song that celebrates America and has become an anthem to this country. Greenwood explained that his love for the United States came during childhood and from his family.

“I was raised on a farm in Sacramento, Calif., and my grandparents were just wonderful,” he said. “I was allowed to excel in music and sports as long as I did my job on the farm. When you learn to work with the earth, you have a great respect for it.

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“I left home at 17-years-old and went to Las Vegas not really seeing the rest of the country and world through normal eyes, because Nevada was kind of a bubble, but I lived through the Vietnam era. I think that’s when I began to formulate my opinion about the country, the sacrifice everybody has made for it and how we will survive as a nation.”

He also talked about his Christian faith and love for God, which grew over time.

“My grandparents, I don’t believe, were very religious, but they recognized that a young man of my age was pretty wild, and they needed to make sure I had something that would ground me,” Greenwood said. “It meant a lot to me to have something very strong, bigger than my parents because I didn’t know my parents very well. I only knew my grandparents, so it gave me a lot of internal strength as I struck out on my own at 17-years-old.”

He also mentioned a new “patriotic” Bible, which he said is about pointing people to the true source of America’s hope, God’s word.

“When they brought this idea to me about a leather-bound Holy Bible that is a patriotic Bible, I loved the idea,” Greenwood said. “They asked me if I would write the lyrics for `God Bless the USA,’  but just the chorus. I did that and signed it, and that’s the only place my name appears on the Bible is the signature underneath, because I’m the author. In the back of the Bible, we present the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, the Constitution and the Pledge of Allegiance.”

Greenwood concluded by explaining how closely God is tied to our history.

“We’re but a minute part of God’s plan for our earth and our humanity,” he said. “I don’t know, unless you keep the faith, God will turn his back on you, and I think it’s yet to be determined how important our country is to the great almighty.”

–Alan Goforth | Metro Voice