Destiny and the Man on the $1 Bill

So I was watching "America: The Story of Us" last night on the History Channel. Very cool program, especially the episode about the American Revolution; now when it got to the pioneers and the Donner family, I had to stop watching. It went from "Yay, America!" to "Boo! Yuck! Cannibalism!" really quickly.

I gained a new respect for George Washington by watching the piece on the revolution and by listening to some things that my dad, the history buff, told me. Inevitably if you ask someone if they could meet anyone who is no longer living, that person will usually list George Washington as a prime candidate. Now I always thought that that was totally unimaginative and probably the only reason they listed him is because they see his face on dollar bills everyday. And frankly I always figured people never knew much about him to justify that response. Really I've never known enough about him to want to meet him. Of course I had great respect for him as a Founding Father and as the first President of the United States, but that was about it.

I now realize the divine hand that was over Washington's life. The character and wisdom that he possessed and the experiences that he went through positioned him and made him the best candidate for leading this brand new nation.

One story that my dad told me I believe occurred when we were still being ruled by the British and Washington was serving as a Colonel (at about age 27, mind you) in the army. He was the only person on horseback during a battle, which makes any person an excellent target, especially when that person is a commanding officer. Without regard to that however, Washington rode back and forth behind his troops to keep them together and to encourage them to hold the line. This of course helped to save their lives, but was without consideration of his own. He rode back and forth behind them the entire battle. When the battle was over, he had more bullet holes in his coat than could be counted. Wow! God had definite purpose for this man, preserved his life, and gave him the determination, wisdom, and courage to help save the life of his men!!

The second story my dad told me occurred during the Revolution in a battle with the British. Washington had rode out in front of his men and raised his sword to signal to fire to start the battle. At the same time Washington was doing this, the British commander was raising his sword as well. The colonial militia and the British army fired at the same time. Of course with the guns at this time, the field immediately filled with smoke. Meanwhile, Washington was still in between the armies! The colonial militia held their breath waiting to see if their commander was still alive. The smoked cleared and there still on his horse, unharmed, sat George Washington!

I'm sure there are stories and stories like that of Washington. There is no doubt in my mind that he was meant to be the first president of the United States of America. There was favor on his life!