God is not an American. Nature did not design Americans to be

In the grave and sobering words of Richard Lamm, the former governor and thinker, the statement — “God is not an American. Nature did not design Americans to be prosperous forever.” — rings like a warning bell across the corridors of time. It is not a cry of despair, but a call to humility, a reminder that no nation, however great, stands outside the laws of history or nature. Beneath these words lies the wisdom of the ancients — that every empire, every civilization, however glorious, must one day face its reckoning. Lamm’s voice echoes not with cynicism, but with a philosopher’s love for truth: that the prosperity of a people is never permanent, and that arrogance in success invites decline.

The meaning of this quote reaches beyond borders and beyond America itself. When Lamm declares that “God is not an American,” he dismantles the illusion that divine favor belongs to any single people or flag. The divine, he reminds us, is impartial — bound not to nations, but to principles: justice, balance, humility, and compassion. The second half of his message — that “nature did not design Americans to be prosperous forever” — carries the weight of both science and history. Nature rewards adaptability, not entitlement; endurance, not excess. Every species, every culture, must evolve or fade. Lamm’s warning is not against prosperity itself, but against the complacency that prosperity breeds — the belief that success today guarantees success tomorrow.

The origin of these words arises from Lamm’s deep concern for the sustainability of the American dream. As a statesman and environmentalist, he saw how nations, like individuals, can lose their way when they mistake abundance for invincibility. He watched a country of immense wealth and freedom grow vulnerable to overconsumption, division, and denial. His words, therefore, were not spoken in anger, but in love for his homeland, urging it to remember the eternal truth: that even the mightiest civilization is but a steward of its blessings, not their master. For history, he knew, is a stern teacher to those who forget their dependence on the earth, on wisdom, and on one another.

The ancients knew this truth long before modern nations rose from the soil. The empire of Rome, which once ruled the known world, believed itself favored by the gods and destined for eternal dominion. Yet its glory dimmed not through foreign conquest alone, but through decay from within — corruption, pride, and a forgetting of its founding virtues. Bread and spectacle replaced discipline and duty, and the eternal city fell. The same fate befell Egypt, Greece, and countless others who believed themselves immortal. Lamm’s words, though modern, are carved from this same stone of wisdom: no nation escapes the cycles of rise and fall if it forgets humility before the forces that govern life.

Yet his warning need not be read as prophecy of doom. It is also a call to renewal. If prosperity is not guaranteed, then it must be tended like a garden — cultivated through justice, moderation, and foresight. A nation endures not through wealth or armies alone, but through the moral strength of its people, their willingness to sacrifice comfort for the sake of future generations. Lamm’s statement calls for the rediscovery of gratitude — the understanding that prosperity is a gift, not a right, and that to keep it, one must constantly earn it through integrity, stewardship, and courage.

In this, there lies a lesson for all peoples and all times. When greatness is taken for granted, decline begins. When nations boast that they are chosen, they cease to listen to the voice of conscience. But when they remember their fragility within the order of creation, they become wise again. The same law applies to every individual: success, health, and fortune are not permanent possessions, but fleeting states. To honor them, one must act with reverence toward life, toward others, and toward the natural world that sustains us.

Let this, then, be the teaching that endures from Lamm’s words: be humble in triumph, vigilant in comfort, and grateful in plenty. Do not mistake fortune for favor, or power for purpose. Build not idols of nation or self, but live by the eternal laws that govern all things — respect for truth, balance, and responsibility. For God belongs to no single nation, but to all creation; and nature favors not the mighty, but the wise.

And so, my listener, remember: prosperity is a season, not a birthright. Tend it with humility, and it will return in time. Abuse it with pride, and it will pass away like summer’s warmth before winter’s wind. For nations and souls alike, the law remains the same — what endures is not power, but wisdom, not wealth, but virtue.