Posted by Bryan | 1 Comment

What now?

Yesterday was a historic, transformational day in the history of our nation. Whether you like it or not, President-elect Barack Obama will step into the role as the next President of the United States of America. Even though I differ quite a bit politically from our new leader, I still have a lot to be excited about.

Dr. Martin Luther King dreamed of a day very similar to yesterday. It was a huge dream and we have not fully arrived yet. But, yesterday was a milestone for our great nation. The race barrier for the highest office in our government was removed and that is significant.

This Sunday, we will pray for our new President. We will bless him. We will pray for protection for him and his family. We will pray for Godly wisdom to guide him. We will pray for unity in our nation. There is plenty of Biblical foundation for all of these prayers.

Our hope is not in our President. Our faith is not in the political system. I trust that God holds the hearts of kings in His hand. Yesterday did not catch God off guard.

I will not speak against our new leader. Instead, I will bless him. He is our President and is due our respect.

To those who would prophesy doom and destruction, I caution you to use wisdom. If you desire to speak prophetically, why not pray that God would speak directly to President Obama? Let’s prophesy radical change to come to our churches and ourselves so that our hearts would be broken for the lost and hurting in our nation. Instead of prophesying destruction, speak words of blessing, peace, wisdom, truth, righteousness and compassion.

I leave you with Phillipians 4:4-9

4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!
5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.
6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.
9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

God bless President Obama and God bless America.

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Let’s get political – part 4

This is my last political post for the season… maybe.

Whatever you do, don’t stay home from the polls. Be an American. Don’t let lack of information stop you. Get informed and then GO VOTE! To not do so is to thumb your nose at all those who paid a huge price for your freedom.

Have you voted yet? Did you vote today? How long did you wait in line to vote? Did you get your free Starbucks, Chick-fil-a and Krispy Kreme? Who did you vote for?

DO IT! DO IT NOW! Then come back and tell us about your experience. We want to know!

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Let’s get political – part 3

Today I wrap up this series by telling you why your vote matters. There are millions (maybe billions) of people who wish they had a say in their government. The privilege to vote came at a high price as thousands of men and women gave their lives for this freedom. To cop out and just not vote is to dishonor that sacrifice.

Don’t just go and throw your vote away because you do not know what is going on. Educate yourself. Pray hard. Find out where the candidates stand on the issues that affect you. If you call yourself a Christ follower, you must set the Bible at the center of your decision. Then go stand in a very long line and vote.

Stop whining and complaining about the election. If we allow the horrible campaign tactics of the candidates to jade us, we all lose. Whatever you do, don’t stay home from the polls. Take your faith in God and His Word with you as you vote. Act like a true believer when standing in line. Hold your head up. Put that sticker on your shirt and proudly let people know that you exercised your right to vote.

Don’t belittle others who do not vote the same as you. An open dialogue is healthy. Tearing each other down makes us no better than the candidates. Not talking about our views isolates us.

I encourage leaders to lead by example. How will the people who follow you know where you are going unless you tell them.God put you in a place of leadership for times like this.

Once you have voted, why not come back here and tell us all who you voted for and why.

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Let’s get political – part 2

This week, we are taking a Biblical look at the political decision process. Allow me to touch on a few points that have guided me in this process.

There are many, many issues facing our country today and all of them are valid. I want to have more money, smaller government, better healthcare, stronger military and on and on. But, there are a few issues that I believe are non-negotiable when it comes to a Biblically based answer.

Today, I will only address one issue. Why? Because I cannot let the other issues outweigh this one. I wish I could be a multiple issue voter. But, this one is too big to ignore.

ABORTION

I believe this is an issue that is so huge that we can not let it pass. Every day, thousands of babies are murdered in the United States. It feels better to say pro-choice or a woman’s right to choose. But, something is wrong when a teenage girl can have the government finance the murdering of the baby in her womb without her parents knowing and you can go to prison and pay a stiff fine for disturbing sea turtle eggs. What does it matter if the eggs aren’t real anyway? Isn’t it a double homicide if you kill a mother and her unborn child?

Now, I know that even with a Republican, pro-life President in office for the last eight years has not overturn Roe v. Wade. I am not convinced that electing a pro-life President this term will even change it. But, I must try. If I give up and risk the lives of another 5,000,000+ babies that will die*. I cannot vote for a President who opposes righteous legislation to save the lives of the unborn.

Psalms 106 talks about the Israelites sacrificing their children to idols. You may be saying that this is different. But, I would argue that the majority of abortions are a result of sin and the need for convenience. I encourage you to read this article from John Piper.

Before you vote, take a look at the two resources below, read your Bible, pray really hard and then GO VOTE!

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And the winner is…

Did you watch the Saddleback Civil Forum On The Presidency? If not, go here to watch it now. I’ll wait…

There are many issues that should affect our decision making process for the next President. We should not vote with our wallets or personal agendas. It is a decision that should be arrived at with a lot of prayer. Every decision we make should be governed by Scripture.

I believe Senator Barack Obama is a man who loves our country. I believe he has a strong desire to see our country prosper. I admire him as a man and as a leader. He is not vying for a popular position. Every decision he makes has and will be scrutinized, picked apart and judged. But, he has stepped up because he believes in our country. I do not agree with everything he stands for. If he becomes our next President, I will honor, respect and pray for him.

Senator John McCain is old. Really old for a Presidential candidate. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. He knows the horrors of war first hand. He has worked for a long time to strengthen our country. Although there are exceptions, with age comes maturity. I honor Senator McCain as a hero and leader in our country. I do not agree with everything he stands for. If he becomes our next President, I will honor, respect and pray for him.

After watching the forum, I do currently have one candidate that I favor over the other. But, I am not done studying their agendas, praying and asking God to speak to me about who I should vote for.

I will write more between now and November 4th about the process I am going through to determine my vote. I hope you are praying and really listening to who will honor this “One nation under God”.

For now, I believe the winner of the Civil Forum was Rick Warren and the church. Thank you Pastor Rick for doing more than just blast one candidate and praise another. Thank you for asking tough questions. Thank you for doing it compassionately.

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