I'm really confused - By Rowen

Two days ago our country got a new president, Mr. Obama. All of the mainstream news media that I have heard has been championing his every liberal word, and seemed to be thrilled with the sharp turn to the left that he is taking our country. This does not surprise me.

Meanwhile, all of my Christian friends and family members on email, facebook, and blogs seem to be aghast, appalled, horrified, and even shocked at his actions and words. Even large socially conservative organizations like Focus on the Family, American Family Association, etc. seem to be hoping to turn President Obama into a social conservative, by urging their constituents to harass the highest government offices with email and phone calls complaining about what the country just signed up for.

I don’t understand people, I guess. I mean this man won the election after spending two years vigorously campaigning with a very liberal agenda. Compared to the others running for president, he minced no words about where he stood on the issues of our day. No one that watched the debates, read or heard news reports about his perspectives and opinions should be surprised about who he really is. He won the Democratic nomination by being more liberal than his opponents, even more than Hillary Clinton. He won the (apparently fair) General Election by being more liberal than John McCain. The majority of Americans wanted the liberal policies of this man; it is simply the truth about it, whether you like it or not…

I personally don’t like Barack Obama’s attitudes, perspective, policies, or actions this week. But I am not surprised, and so you won’t hear me decrying his every move as we observe the unfolding of the inevitable. Charles Dickens once said “You make your bed and you must lie on it”. What we should be more concerned with is why he got elected, and why the House and Senate are controlled by social liberals. That is all about us, the American voters that put them all there.

So, as a Christian, how should I pray for President Obama, as my Bible says that I should? I have ideas, but I wonder what you think, and so I beg you to comment and share your thoughts.

Do you think that my family will actually allow our President's picture on our blog?

Comments received so far:
Will yours be next?

Comment #1:

I too am not the least bit amazed. Like you say, for any thinking person who paid attention, Obama told us what he values all along. His voting record (what little he did vote on) obviously did not support the values we hold.
I pray for his salvation as for every other soul. I pray God will help true Christians rise and take a stand instead of jumping on the band wagon of "nobody contradict me and I'll contradict nobody else. We'll all get along and accept each other right where we are," all in the name of tolerance and non-judgmental living. With this mindset, there is no truth and evil will prevail. We will all sadly suffer. God have mercy on our nation is another prayer I pray a lot these days.

Comment #2:

When I began to pray for our president I was deeply convicted that my heart was not praying for him correctly; this is what God has given me so far, and I really wanted to share it with all of you. Thanks for reading.

Most important things to pray for:

• God would turn His heart toward Righteousness and not solely toward Justice; that ending or DRASTICALLY lowering the holocaust of abortion would become a consuming issue of this administration. With God all things are possible.
• That God would give him a spirit of wisdom and revelation.
• That above all his family and he would be blessed, and safe, and that he would truly encounter the Lord Jesus and the power of His love and mercy.
• For Barak, Michelle, Sasha & Malia to be protected and God provide for them during this time and bless them and keep them and Thank God for them.

Here are some Bible references: (click to read)

• 1 Timothy 2 (Nero was the king when Paul wrote these words.)
• Titus 3
• Daniel 2:20-22
• Daniel 4:17

Comment #3:

We as Christians should pray for the President. President Obama needs the Salvation of the Lord. As Nebuchadnezzar needed God, so does this man. May God bring the mighty down and humble them, so that they may see Christ high and lifted up. "Lord open the eyes of the blind that they may see and glorify God in every law and policy that passes." We can take comfort in knowing that God controls the affairs of man, and He can turn evil into good.

Comment #4:

You are absolutely right. We get what we pay for, and in this case we paid for Obama with our votes, and we got him. Even if we don't like his policies, he won by an overwhelming majority. I also agree that he is more consistent than many Republicans are. We have not been deceived. He said he is going to do certain things as President, and now he is carrying them out. As far as praying for him, I think we need to pray that God will use him as God wills. Remember the heart of the king is in the Lord's hand. Looking at Biblical history, often the Lord used unrighteous leader to carry out His purposes. However often the Lord's agenda is not ours, so we fight in our own strength. Sometimes the Lord lets things fall apart, so He can start working.

Please read this well written post by a thinking Christian

I urge all of our readers to take a couple of minutes to read and contemplate this thought provoking article, then comment here about it.

"Politics of Faith"

"The Lord is the strength of my life; whom shall I fear?" - Psalm 27:1Another election year is upon us. A time to look forward to new beginnings, to experience some trepidation about the foreign and domestic policies of the upcoming president, and to either reminisce on the good times with current administration or to curse its inevitable missteps. That is, unless you're a Christian. If you're a Christian, each new election is another chance to slip from serene, faith-based rationality into frenetic, emotionally-charged panic.

Every four years, a notable percentage of the Christians I know (and many of those I don't) forsake all semblance of reason to spread unsubstantiated rumors about the possible misdeeds of "the other candidate," usually a Democrat. They spend the months leading up the election is a worried state not much different from mild dementia, their voices trembling slightly as they inform everyone they meet that the world is ending if the wrong person gets into the White House. This year, I've had people tell me they'd be surprised if we ever held another free election if Obama is elected. I've received countless email forward indicating Obama doesn't salute the flag; he doesn't support the troops; he's a radical Muslim in disguise; and so on. I have yet to receive one that indicates that he is black, but I suspect it will be forthcoming before this election cycle is over.

This eleventh hour panic of the faithful seems very strange to me. Of all people, shouldn't Christians be the ones least concerned with those in political power? Paul, writing during the time of the Roman Empire (a greater threat to Christians than even Obama and his pastor), had very little to say about the political climate. I can find in his letters no overexcited hyperbole urging Christians to hand out poorly-researched political pamphlets, lest another pagan be elected Caesar. Paul's only nods toward politics seem to instruct Christians to obey the government as much possible and to focus on spreading the Gospel of Christ. "The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord," Proverbs says, but to hear my fellow Christians discuss politics, you might be forgiven for thinking they don't have an Old Testament. Modern Christianity has transformed itself from a grassroots movement that sought to change society by changing lives, into a Political Action Committee trying to enforce morality through legislation, a plan that might change the nation's actions but can never change its heart. Even if it succeeded, it would only create a nation of pretty tombs, gleaming rocks full of dead bones.

The notion of the apolitical Christian is anathema in modern Christianity, but historically the church's greatest successes have always been those that started with the people and worked up, rather than starting with the government and working down. Unfortunately, many Christians have alienated the very people they are supposed to be reaching by focusing their considerable energies on opposing same-sex marriage, Roe vs. Wade, and gun control instead of building real, genuine relationships with those around them. Christians need to realize there is never going to be nationwide repentance just because we have a Conservative Supreme Court. True change comes only from knowing Jesus Himself, something no law can ever cause.

This year, instead of getting caught up in exactly which end-time prophecies Obama is fulfilling or making bullet-pointed lists of the ways the McCain resembles Hilary (I found 19 parallels!), I'm trying to keep a proper perspective. The hearts of kings are in the hand of the Lord--what do I have to be afraid of? Besides Muslim, gun control, and gays, that is.

Written by Brent Waggoner, Frankfort, IN June 16, 2008