Enjoy a little levity today....I think we all have been stressed out lately!!!!!!!!!!

  
   
   
  

DateTuesday, November 4, 2008 at 09:19AM

I didn't vote for him. But he is our new president. Given the angst so many Christians feel about an Obama presidency, it may be a good idea to take a step back and consider the following . . .

First, this is not the end of the world. It is not even the end of the Republic. Yes, the city of man has lurched hard-left. That happens once in a while. And then over time it drifts back to the center, and then lurches right again. This is what the city of man does. The reality is that the city of man is not any more amenable to Christianity when the lurch is toward the right than it is when it is lurching left. That is the nature of the city of man.

I am old enough to remember a fair bit of this lurching: Kennedy (center-left), Johnson (left), Nixon (right-center), Ford (center-right) Carter (left), Reagan (right), Bush 41 (center-right), Clinton (center-left), Bush 43 (right-center), and now Obama (left? left-center?).  Life goes on folks.

Second, since we are simultaneously citizens of two kingdoms (the kingdom of God and the city of man) I certainly hope we find it within ourselves to sincerely wish our new president well, and fervently pray for God's blessing upon him and his new administration (1 Timothy 2:1-4). Our nation is facing a severe economic crisis. We are deeply divided along political and racial lines. There is great resentment about the war in Iraq, and great uncertainty about what to do about Iran and Israel. Our new president faces a daunting task in leading a divided nation in a very uncertain time. He truly needs our prayers. The American presidency is one huge job.

Third, if Obama isn't up to the job, then all of us will suffer. If he is everything that his most ardent supporters claim that he is, he still faces a task which can overwhelm the even greatest of men.  So, let us hope and pray that Obama will capably fulfill his office and lead our nation forward through this tough time. There is too much at stake here for the partisans among us to cynically wish that Obama will fail so that Republicans can get the White House back in 2012. Now is the time for partisan politics to go on hiatus. We don't yet know what Obama will do. But we do owe President-Elect Obama the benefit of the doubt for the time being.

Far and away, the worst president of my life-time was Jimmy Carter. He wasn't an ideological leftist or a socialist (although he governed as one). Carter was a nice man (and a professing Christian) who was an inept president. But his ineptitude hurt all Americans--remember gas lines, hostages left in Iran for 444 days, and stagflation? So, I hope Obama is all that is advertised, because I don't want to suffer through that stuff again. It was a horrible time for many Americans.

Fourth, now that we have our first African-American president, let us also hope and pray for real and lasting racial reconciliation. May the Obama presidency heal the wounds that so many African-Americans deeply feel and which white Americans can't truly understand. That said, while there will always be racism in the city of man, I hope African-Americans realize that it was white Americans who elected the first black president. That is huge. Just twenty years ago, such a thing was unthinkable. This is a real chance to heal old wounds, right old wrongs, and then move on. Let us pray this happens!

Fifth, there is every possibility that Obama will seek to implement a far-left, socialist agenda. But there is also the possibility that Obama will be a centrist, and that he will govern from the left-center like Bill Clinton did. Remember, it is far easier to run for president and make all kinds of outlandish promises to your various constituencies, than it is to actually govern. The struggle to keep power will pull Obama back to the center, even if his instincts are to go hard-left. This what happens once you live inside the beltway and you grow to like that address @ 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

Should Obama actually succeed in pushing forward the socialist, pro-abortion agenda which so many fear, many of the anti-Bush and union voters who elected him will turn on him, and his "rock-star" popularity will quickly evaporate. The mid-term elections will likely see that huge Democrat majority bounced right out of Congress.  Weakness in a national crisis, or a prolonged recession and/or a deepening economic crisis will also really hurt Obama--along with the rest of us. It won't be long before we find out whether or not that suit was empty, or if Obama has the mettle for the job.

Finally, there is a fundamental question here. Why wouldn't we want Obama to succeed? Are partisan politics really more important than the well-being of the nation? This is one of those periods when there are great national changes afoot, and this is truly a time to hope for the best (in terms of God's providence) for our beloved country. But we also need to hold Obama's feet to the fire (in terms of his campaign promises) and not be so naive as to think that the city of man (or President Obama) has any real answers to life's ultimate problems. I doubt very seriously that if John McCain had been elected president the millennium would begin on January 21, 2009.

This is going to be a very tough term of office for any president. So, it is our duty to pray for our new president, and wish him and our nation well. Meanwhile let us go about our callings and vocations as Christian citizens doing what Paul told us to do, "If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all" (Romans 12:18), all the while not forgetting the words of the Psalmist (143), "Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation. When his breath departs, he returns to the earth; on that very day his plans perish."


Author  Kim Riddlebarger

Posted by Ligon Duncan


Well, my country and much of the rest of the world are electric with the election of Barack Obama as the new President of the United States of America. To say that it is historic, is a gross understatement.

Justin Taylor and Al Mohler, have both inspired some reflection on the question of how we as Christians --Bible-believing, Reformed, Christians-- ought to pray for him, and I have freely borrowed many of their words and thoughts on this. But here are some ideas for leading our people to pray for our President-Elect. Barack Obama.

We ought to commit ourselves to pray for our new President, for his wife and family, for his administration, and for the nation. We will do this, not only because of the biblical command to pray for our rulers, but because of the second greatest commandment "Love your neighbor" and what better way to love your neighbor, than to pray for his well-being. Those with the greatest moral and political differences with the President-Elect ought to ask God to engender in them, by His Spirit, genuine neighbor-love for Mr. Obama.

We will also pray for our new President because he (and we) face challenges that are not only daunting but potentially disastrous. We will pray that God will grant him wisdom. He and his family will face new challenges and the pressures of this office. May God protect them, give them joy in their family life, and hold them close together.

We will pray that God will protect this nation even as our new President settles into his role as Commander in Chief, and that God will grant peace as he leads the nation through times of trial and international conflict and tension.

We will pray that God would change President-Elect Obama's mind and heart on issues of crucial moral concern. May God change his heart and open his eyes to see abortion as the murder of the innocent unborn, to see marriage as an institution to be defended, and to see a host of issues in a new light. We must pray this from this day until the day he leaves office. God is sovereign, after all.

For those Christians who are more dismayed than overjoyed about the prospects of an Obama presidency, there should be a remembrance that as our President, Barack Obama will have God-given authority to govern us, and that we should view him as a servant of God (Rom. 13:1, 4) to whom we should be subject (Rom. 13:1, 5; 1 Pet. 2:13-14). Thus, again, we are to pray for Barack Obama (1 Tim. 2:1-2). We are to thank God for Barack Obama (1 Tim. 2:1-2). We are to respect Barack Obama (Rom. 13:7). We are to honor Barack Obama (Rom. 13:7; 1 Pet. 2:17).

For those Christians who are more overjoyed than concerned about the prospects of an Obama presidency, there should be a remembrance of our ultimate allegiance: Jesus is Lord (and thus, He, not we, decides what is right and wrong), we serve God not man, and the Lord himself has promised to establish "the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve him" (Malachi 3:18). Thus, where our new president opposes or undermines biblical moral standards in our society, fails to uphold justice for the unborn, undermines religious liberties or condones an ethos that is hostile to the Gospel, we will pray for God's purposes to triumph over our President's plans and policies.

Without doubt and whatever our particular views may be, we face hard days ahead. Realistically, we must all expect to be frustrated and disappointed. Some now may feel defeated and discouraged. While others may all-too-soon find their audacious hopes unfounded and unrealized. We must all keep ever in mind that it is God who raises up leaders and nations, and it is God who pulls them down, and who judges both nations and rulers. We must not act or think like unbelievers, or as those who do not trust God.

"We are people that know politics is important, but not ultimate. We know that politics has its place, an urgent and important place where, in the City of Man, decisions are made that can make the difference between life and death, injustice and justice, mercy and no mercy, commonweal or common disaster.

But we also know that there is in this world at its very best only a hint of the kingdom that is to come, where God's reign is supreme.

No government will ever be able to say, 'Every tear has been wiped away.' No government will ever be able to say, 'The blind have received sight and the deaf have received hearing and the lame now walk.'…That power is God's alone."

—Albert Mohler, "After the Election"

The Change You'll Get
Americans will finally learn what Barack Obama really believes and really wants.

By Clifford D. May

Who says you can't have it all? The Democrats — the Left — now have the White House, control of both houses of Congress, a majority of governors' mansions, a majority of state legislatures, the entertainment media, the elite news media, the unions, the educational establishment, the lion's share of the philanthropic community, and increasing power over the courts.

Will President-elect Barack H. Obama use this awesome power to strengthen America's defenses in a time of global conflict and repair America's economy in a period of financial distress? Or will his goal be to solidify the Left's grip for the long-term, for example by shutting down conservative talk radio and perhaps other pockets of media resistance, by growing the percentage of Americans dependent on government programs, and by using immigration policy and gerrymandering to create a permanent Democratic majority? Your guess is as good as mine.

↓ Keep reading this article ↓

Top 10 Predictions No Matter Who Wins the Election

1. The Bible will still have all the answers.
2. Prayer will still work.
3. The Holy Spirit will still move.
4. God will still inhabit the praises of His people.
5. There will still be God-anointed preaching.
6. There will still be singing of praise to God.
7. God will still pour out blessings upon His people.
8. There will still be room at the Cross.
9. Jesus will still love you.
10. Jesus will still save the lost when they come to Him.