Convictions

Who Said It?

1. "Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery?"


2. "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."

3. "The liberties of our country . . . are worth defending at all hazards; and it is our duty to defend them against all attacks. We have received them as a fair inheritance from our worthy ancestors . . . (who) purchased them for us with toil and danger. . . ."

4. "The present state of America is truly alarming to every man who is capable of reflection."


5. "Swim or sink, live or die, survive or perish with my country was my unalterable determination."


6. "Let our object be our country, our whole country, and nothing but our country."

7. "Civilization itself seems to be in the balance, but right is more precious than peace."

8. "We, too, born to freedom, are willing to fight to main¬tain freedom. We, and all others who believe as deeply as we do, would rather die on our feet than live on our knees."

9. "Of what avail the plow or sail or land or life—if Freedom fail!"

10. "I would rather be dead than Red."

Would you like to know who made these victory-seeking, super-patriotic, extreme statements, the land that some scoff at and attack these days?

Here are the answers: 1) Patrick Henry, of course, and these words were followed by his famous: "I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty or give me death." 2) Benjamin Franklin. 3) Samuel Adams. 4) Tom Paine. 5) John Adams. 6) Daniel Webster. 7) Woodrow Wilson. 8) Franklin D. Roosevelt. 9) Ralph Waldo Emerson. 10) J. Edgar Hoover.

These men don’t have the same political persuasion, didn’t live in the same time, and sometimes disagreed among themselves. But each of them had a conviction that they stood for. Are you willing to stand for your convictions?






Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.


- Hebrews 11:1 (New American Standard Bible)






Dear Lord we pray that we would have strong convictions and that those convictions would be based on Your word. In Jesus name, Amen.