Press conferences. News releases. Tweets. Blogs. Debates. "I'm running." "I'm not running." Press conferences. News releases. Tweets.....And on.......And on.......And on. Another presidential campaign season is off and running. Maybe its just me, but I'm a little more comcerned this go round than I have been at other times. There seems to be so much desperation, fear and a sense of helplessness on the part of so many. It hasn't helped that the media,in all its forms, has to hype, spin and embellish everything just so we listen. Frankly, there are a few important issues on the table as well: the economy, unemployment, state and national budget defic1ts, mounting national debt, two wars, etc. I'm no political wonk. However, a lot appears to be at stake this time, and there appears to be very little room for error. I'm not mainly thinking of candidates here, although they do matter. What mattersmost, at least to me, is we've been failing to address some critical issues in our country for a long time. We've got some overdue businesss to take care of, and we cannot put it off any longer.
I think most folks feel some of this, too. Here's where my concern comes in. When people feel desperate and the issues before them seem insurmountable, people, all people, go looking for a human messsiah. History is filled with this happening over and over again. As a matter of fact, this happens more often than not. That's what happened in Germany between the two world wars, resulting in Hitler being democratically elected by the people. Hitler promised to fix their problems. Before Germany, the same scenario played out in ancient Israel. The Israelites demanded a king so he could protect them and make them feel secure- see 1 Samuel 8. The Israelites got their wish. In neither case did things turn out well. The Germans traded their souls and freedom and the lives of innocent millions for a sense of security and a false hope. The Israelites floundered for decades, walked in sin and turned from God due to "their choice" of a weak and godless king. (1 Samuel 12:13)
"Human messiahs" almost never pan out. You think we would learn that, but we forget. As the presidential race heats up, it appears more and more that viable candidates must list "walking on water" on their resumes. Because we're nervous about the future and want to feel secure, we're beginning to ask our candidates to write messianic sized checks. Will they be able to cash those checks, though? If not, the candidate will be discredited in our eyes, we'll become even more jaded with the political process and we'll be in the same worsening mess with interest thrown in. Here's the worst case scenario: what if our messiah is able to cash the check, to come through on his/her promises, to save us? What will that cost us by way of money, conscience, justice and freedom, etc? What will it cost the poor or rich? What will it cost the powerful and the weak? What will it cost the environment? What will it cost the innocents in other countries? Messiahs never come cheap. Are you willing to pay the price, or demand that others do so, for a sense of security?
Something else happens when we go messiah hunting: we relieve ourselves of responsibility. We want to hand off the tough choices to someone else. We certainly want someone else to bear the brunt of the sacrifices that need to be made. Enter the messiah. He/she will miraculously carry the whole burden for us. We need not miss a night's sleep or worry about losing any skin or coin in the fray. The messiah will deliver us. Not. We live in a nation that depends upon the participation of its citizenry in the political process. Our government, as we know it, would come to a grinding halt without our involvement. No doubt, some form of governance would take place without the citizenry's participation, but it would not be government "of the people, by the people, for the people." Tyranny is more like it.
It seems a reasonable corollary to this is that we get the government we deserve. Yah, I know, none of us directly caused the housing market collapse or directly added a trillion dollars to the national debt. But then, neither did any one else. The sea in which we are drowning has been filled to lethal levels one drop at a time. We've let the government and politics descend to what it has become. We've wanted our cake and to eat it, too. Cut a corner here, over reach over there; spend a bunch now, pay for it later; withold from that group, bring home the pork to my district. Add it all up over a few decades and you end up with.......our current state of affairs.
Let me make a few suggestions for the upcoming presidential race:
1. Stop looking for a messiah. Ordinary flesh and blood will be running for office. Sorry about that. Getting this issue out of the way, though, just might help us to take a more honest look at the candidates and temper our expectations. If any candidate promises utopia or heaven on earth, well, you've been warned.
2. Nothing is going to get better without tough choices and some sacrifice. The numbers are the numbers, promises have been made and the liabilities are what they are. We'll have to carry this together. Anyone who says different isn't being totally truthful. The huge issues for us will be ones of justice, honesty, compassion and not shirking our responsibilities. I invite you to read passages like Exodus 23:1-9, Matthew 6:24-34, Luke 10:30-37, Luke 12:13-34, Romans 13:1-7 and others to help inform your conscience.
3. The Doxology says, "Praise God from Whom all blessings flow.." No matter what, we have been and continue to be a blessed nation. Gratitude to God is in order every day. Pray for our leaders as we've been called to do.
4. As followers of Jesus, our ultimate hope is not in or of this world. Believers have to keep this straight. Heaven is coming, but not through Washington DC. Let's prepare for that Day, in part, by being good citizens here.
Bob
I think most folks feel some of this, too. Here's where my concern comes in. When people feel desperate and the issues before them seem insurmountable, people, all people, go looking for a human messsiah. History is filled with this happening over and over again. As a matter of fact, this happens more often than not. That's what happened in Germany between the two world wars, resulting in Hitler being democratically elected by the people. Hitler promised to fix their problems. Before Germany, the same scenario played out in ancient Israel. The Israelites demanded a king so he could protect them and make them feel secure- see 1 Samuel 8. The Israelites got their wish. In neither case did things turn out well. The Germans traded their souls and freedom and the lives of innocent millions for a sense of security and a false hope. The Israelites floundered for decades, walked in sin and turned from God due to "their choice" of a weak and godless king. (1 Samuel 12:13)
"Human messiahs" almost never pan out. You think we would learn that, but we forget. As the presidential race heats up, it appears more and more that viable candidates must list "walking on water" on their resumes. Because we're nervous about the future and want to feel secure, we're beginning to ask our candidates to write messianic sized checks. Will they be able to cash those checks, though? If not, the candidate will be discredited in our eyes, we'll become even more jaded with the political process and we'll be in the same worsening mess with interest thrown in. Here's the worst case scenario: what if our messiah is able to cash the check, to come through on his/her promises, to save us? What will that cost us by way of money, conscience, justice and freedom, etc? What will it cost the poor or rich? What will it cost the powerful and the weak? What will it cost the environment? What will it cost the innocents in other countries? Messiahs never come cheap. Are you willing to pay the price, or demand that others do so, for a sense of security?
Something else happens when we go messiah hunting: we relieve ourselves of responsibility. We want to hand off the tough choices to someone else. We certainly want someone else to bear the brunt of the sacrifices that need to be made. Enter the messiah. He/she will miraculously carry the whole burden for us. We need not miss a night's sleep or worry about losing any skin or coin in the fray. The messiah will deliver us. Not. We live in a nation that depends upon the participation of its citizenry in the political process. Our government, as we know it, would come to a grinding halt without our involvement. No doubt, some form of governance would take place without the citizenry's participation, but it would not be government "of the people, by the people, for the people." Tyranny is more like it.
It seems a reasonable corollary to this is that we get the government we deserve. Yah, I know, none of us directly caused the housing market collapse or directly added a trillion dollars to the national debt. But then, neither did any one else. The sea in which we are drowning has been filled to lethal levels one drop at a time. We've let the government and politics descend to what it has become. We've wanted our cake and to eat it, too. Cut a corner here, over reach over there; spend a bunch now, pay for it later; withold from that group, bring home the pork to my district. Add it all up over a few decades and you end up with.......our current state of affairs.
Let me make a few suggestions for the upcoming presidential race:
1. Stop looking for a messiah. Ordinary flesh and blood will be running for office. Sorry about that. Getting this issue out of the way, though, just might help us to take a more honest look at the candidates and temper our expectations. If any candidate promises utopia or heaven on earth, well, you've been warned.
2. Nothing is going to get better without tough choices and some sacrifice. The numbers are the numbers, promises have been made and the liabilities are what they are. We'll have to carry this together. Anyone who says different isn't being totally truthful. The huge issues for us will be ones of justice, honesty, compassion and not shirking our responsibilities. I invite you to read passages like Exodus 23:1-9, Matthew 6:24-34, Luke 10:30-37, Luke 12:13-34, Romans 13:1-7 and others to help inform your conscience.
3. The Doxology says, "Praise God from Whom all blessings flow.." No matter what, we have been and continue to be a blessed nation. Gratitude to God is in order every day. Pray for our leaders as we've been called to do.
4. As followers of Jesus, our ultimate hope is not in or of this world. Believers have to keep this straight. Heaven is coming, but not through Washington DC. Let's prepare for that Day, in part, by being good citizens here.
Bob
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