Did the TV station have it right?
“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord …” is the first portion of Psalm 33:12.
I learned that powerful message … from television!
Yes, from TV.
As a kid living in the Phoenix area, there used to be a television station owned by famous cowboy star Gene Autry that had the tag line, “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord. KOOL-TV, channel 10, Phoenix.” I heard that tag line so often it provoked me to look it up in the Bible, and to ponder its truth.
Once the station was sold, the tag line also disappeared. With it, over time, we’ve become a nation whose god isn’t the Lord. In fact, it would be a rare thing for a television station to proclaim any such notion.
Have you noticed that as we have dropped such a bold proclamation, America has also been much less blessed?
Perhaps those words from the Psalms were actually true: “BLESSED is the nation whose GOD is the LORD …”!
Scotty
February 10, 2021 at 11:55 am
Wow! I was really happy to find your blog and this article. I happened to make a post on my Instagram page today because I was doing my Bible study and this very verse came up. I grew up as a child in Phoenix listening to that same station ID and the announcer and the Bible verse with the American flag proudly waving in the background. As I reread that verse today, 50 years later, I was overcome with bittersweet memories and a deep sorrow for the state of our nation. Thank you for confirming my childhood memory, and also for a little fact I didn’t know: that gene Autry was the owner of that TV station!!
February 10, 2021 at 3:56 pm
I’m glad you enjoyed the post!
June 28, 2021 at 9:57 pm
Me too! Your story is exactly like mine Patricia. And I was SO happy to find this post. Funny how we are all thinking about this. I no longer live in the area, but this memory came to mind as I was reading through the Psalms. May the Lord be glorified!
April 2, 2022 at 6:51 pm
I grew up in Phoenix as well and remember seeing and hearing that tagline. It shows how much the culture of our nation has changed. Sad and disappointing. Thanks for this post and for your comments.
October 14, 2023 at 6:37 am
I share the same memories. I was born and raised in Phoenix. Even just this morning I was reading Psalm 33, and when I read verse 10 it so reminded me of this memory. I, also, did not know Gene Autry owned the station. What a difference our country has made since that time. Shows the power of God’s word and how bad things get when people depart from it.
October 14, 2023 at 7:56 am
Amen! Thanks for sharing, Pam.