Feb. 23, 2010 — Woody Guthrie

Seventy years ago, songwriter Woody Guthrie composed his well-known song “This Land Is Your Land.”

The song arose from the many years he had spent traveling the country by freight train, composing and singing for other hoboes and vagrants before finally settling in California and building a musical career during the Depression, a time of great tension between wealthy and working people.

His song bridged those two parts of America, with the verses praising the beauty of the country he loved and the chorus reminding us that these riches belong to all of us, rich and poor alike.

Sounds kind of like what Jesus told us about God's life-giving grace – that whether we are rich, poor or somewhere in between, that God's grace was made for you and me.

Just a thought. I'm Sid Batts from First Presbyterian Church in downtown Greensboro, fpcgreensboro.org.