Where Do We Go From Here?

I don't know about you, but I was in a real funk on Nov. 5th. This election was not the first time that I have been disappointed in the results (ie: Clinton's 2 terms), but for some reason I was effected to a much greater degree. I was not a strong believer in John McCain as the right man for the job. In fact I was unsure of my vote until he selected Sarah Palin as a running mate. Somehow though, I knew there was more riding on this election than any previous in my lifetime. Perhaps part of my reaction was due to the obvious negligence of the mainstream media in letting the American people know just exactly who Barak Hussein Obama is.

Let me back up just a bit and tell you something you may find extremely weird, troublesome, nutty, etc (pick your own word). I was very anxious for this election. I found myself counting the days when we were still weeks away from the voting. I voted early here in Texas and was really looking forward to spending the election day evening with friends and watching the returns come in. Then a strange thing happened. As I finished work for the day (which was early on Tuesday) I started to feel a heaviness in my heart about the evening. As I walked up to the front door of my home, I noticed that the American flag we had out had somehow become completely wrapped around itself and the pole. Ordinarily I would probably of thought nothing about it, except that it had never happened before. But on this day I heard a voice (not audibly) say that for the next four years the flag (which I somehow knew was representative of our freedom) would be bound up and not allowed to fly freely.

If you knew me, you would know that this was a pretty weird thing for me to experience. As I thought about it I felt strongly that many of our rights (free speech, right to bear arms, etc.) would be challenged and perhaps even restricted in the years to come. I tried to shake this off and told myself that it was silly, since the polls had not even closed yet and surely the McCain-Palin ticket would win. I just couldn't shake the feeling of dread and/or doom that I felt the rest of the night. By around 9:00 CST I knew it was over. Depression set in!

Having some time to think about this and process it some (my brain works on stuff SLOWLY) I have arrived at what I think is the Lord's will in all of this. We are told in the Bible that God is Omnipotent and His purposes will be accomplished. So where does that put us as Christians that may feel a man has been elected that supports some agendas we know go against God's will, and others that are at the very least contrary to the Constitution? We must rest and be at peace with God's sovereignty and know that He will work things for our ultimate good.

We must also be vigilant and watch closely for any party or politician that may go against the principles of the Constitution and our founding fathers. If and when these issues arise we must not be silent, as the German people were in the 1930's, but we must protest and petition to be heard. Beyond this we must also, and more importantly, pray for our leaders... even those we don't like. We must pray that God's will is done and pray that He would give insight and wisdom to those governing our country. I am not proud of the fact that I did not do this when Mr. Clinton was in office because I so strongly opposed the man and his lack of integrity, honesty and morals... but let us learn our lesson and do our part this time around. We must be a light and a blessing to all and truly learn to selflessly pursue God's will over our own social or political agenda.

Peace is the Answer... or is it?

I was raised during the 60's and 70's, a time when changes were coming... and not all of them good. There was a lot of unrest with young people born in the 40's and 50's that were disenchanted with a war they didn't understand and the politicians that were trying hard to lose it. For the first time ever television was showing the horrors of war to the public and they didn't like it. Suddenly peace was the answer to all our problems. If we could just leave the rest of the world, and mankind as a whole, to do whatever makes them happy all would be better off. We just needed to talk, listen and understand each other and everyone would act reasonably and avoid war.

If you believe that man is basically good and desires nothing but the best for everyone, I guess the peace movement all makes sense. After all, if our enemies are basically just good people then there must be a reason why they are behaving in a violent or threatening manner. That reason must be America. Our system of capitalism, freedom, religion and foreign policy must force our enemies to action. We must be the catalyst that makes them behave in such a manner and hate, attack and kill others.

Of course the only problem with this logic is the premise that man is good. The truth is that man is inherently evil and selfish. We are all born with a rebellious nature that is concerned only about ourselves and our pleasure. Unfortunately history is full of people that demonstrated this time and time again. How can we believe that other governments will always be peaceful and benevolent when we see hate and crime everyday? No amount of rationalization will convince a leader bent on destruction of peoples of another class, race or religious belief to behave in a civilized manner. Sometimes nations must be disciplined and punished just as individuals are in most societies.

Peace is certainly an admirable goal and one we strive toward constantly, however, peace at all costs is not worth the price that must be paid. Peace is valuable, but not more valuable than justice. Life is valuable, but not more valuable than principle. I would suggest that without justice and principle, peace is not worth anything except to those that fear death more than their loss of freedom or basic human rights. No, peace is not necessarily the answer. The answer is found in a people that pursue righteousness and are willing to stand up for the rights of others regardless of the price that must be paid. If it means trading our lives for the lives and rights of those less fortunate, then so be it.