Patriotism??

I saw a ribbon magnet on a car this morning that said, "God Bless New Orleans." My first thought was that it was rather pathetic. Why should we be asking God to bless that ruined place, especially when it was such a Sodom-and-Gomorrah type of city? But then I thought to myself, "Is it really that much different from the God Bless the USA magnet I have on my car?" I guess it's really not, because both are expressions of concern and goodwill for the chunk of the planet that you consider your home.

I think patriotism definitely has its place, and the values our country was founded upon are worth fighting for. On the other hand though, we shouldn't take it too far and start thinking that God owes America special favors or something. After all, this world is not our home.