Random Thoughts and Ramblings

Tag: POTUS

  • Prayerful Hope for President Trump

    prayer-blocksI have to be very honest: I have had a lot of mixed feelings about the outcome of the last presidential election. Today I had many of those same mixed feelings as I witnessed the inauguration of (now) President Trump. While I did not vote for Mr. Trump (who I voted for is irrelevant and it’s likely not who you think), I do have to acknowledge that he is the President of the United States and should be given the opportunity to govern and to finish establishing his cabinet. As such, my hope is that his term in office is one of peace, grace, mercy, and that the hope that many Americans have of a better life will come to fruition. I hope you will join me in sincerely praying for President Trump as he seeks to lead this nation.

    Today as I was pondering all of the events of the last few months, I thought of three passages of God’s Word that I would like for President Trump to keep in mind as he shapes his policies and chooses his advisers, department heads, secretaries, and others who will fill crucial positions within the government.

    The first is Matthew 25:34-40 (NLT):

    “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’

    “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’

    “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’

    If the United States is to continue claiming to be a Christian nation, one of the things we must do is show mercy and generosity to those who are in need of it. I’ll give you a hint as to who that is: You and me. All of us. It matters not what we look like, where we come from, or even what deity we place our faith in (if any). Christians are called to show mercy and to provide for the needs of all people, all of our neighbors (that would be everyone), and people who are even from outside of our borders. God’s kingdom is much bigger than the United States. The reality is, we are not special in God’s eyes because all people are chosen by God and are worthy to be at His table.

    All of this to say: We are called be generous in caring for the needs of all people, especially the poor. Let us not forget later on in Matthew 25 God judges the ones who fail to care for the “least of these.” My hope is that while Mr. Trump makes decisions that will especially impact the poor, he keep in mind that caring for them is part of the calling of all Christians.

    Next is Micah 6:8 (NLT):

    No, O people, the Lord has told you what is good,
    and this is what he requires of you:
    to do what is right, to love mercy,
    and to walk humbly with your God.

    To really understand what the meaning of this verse is, we need to look at whats going on the larger context. Through the prophet Micah, God is chastising the people of Israel because they have forgotten who they are and whose they are. They have forgotten that God was the one who brought them through the wilderness and made a way to freedom for them. It was not a king or even Moses, it was all God. They have been deep in the mire of sin and what God is telling them is that trying to buy His forgiveness with offerings and then returning to their selfish ways is not going to cut it. Instead, God – more than anything else – simply wants them to live in a way that reflects the life of those who claim to love Him. Jesus summed this up when told us (more or less) to love God above all else and to love our neighbors as we love ourselves.

    My hope for President Trump is that he remembers that we are called not only to be generous but to be just and to ensure that we truly have “liberty and justice for all.” That is not just the closing words of the Pledge of Allegiance but it’s a biblical mandate. All people for whom he now assumes care for are entitled to justice and he should do all within his power to ensure that justice is truly available to all people.

    Finally, Proverbs 15:22 (NLT):

    Plans go wrong for lack of advice;
    many advisers bring success.

    This should go without saying, that failure to seek wise counsel and to heed their advice is a recipe for disaster. Mr. Trump has been very outspoken on his views about… everything. He has made promises and certainly seems to be set in his ways. My hope is that he surrounds himself with many who are wise and can offer to him the advice he needs to truly consider all angles of an issue, the people his decisions will impact, and how not only our citizens but how the world will react. While I do agree that nations should be free to place their interests first, we must also be mindful that our actions as a nation do make waves all over the world. Not to mention that any decision he makes on issues such as healthcare will certainly impact us all in positive and negative ways. May Mr. Trump have enough people wise enough to help him keep the pulse on what the American people need and how to best meet those needs.

    Bonus: 1 Timothy 2:1-2 (NLT):

    I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them. Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity.

    I certainly hope that President Trump will pray for discernment, but this one is more for you and me. Regardless of how we feel about President Trump, Christians are called to pray for our leaders. Note that Paul did not differentiate between kings we agree with and kings with whom we do not. If we truly want to call ourselves a Christian nation, we must be people who pray for our leaders regardless of our political ideology. In keeping with what I said above about God choosing all people to come to His table, we must practice the same love no matter what. It is not only in our best interests to pray for our political leaders but it is also our duty. Let’s take it seriously.

  • Biblical Leadership

    4070b18a4c0375f82ee73208f15b1874302d3a269de045e28994de1162799d1dAre you sick of the Presidential debates yet? Oh, just wait until we get closer to the general election!

    As a pastor, I don’t feel that it’s appropriate for me to tell you which candidate or which party to support. Non-Profit status concerns aside, I simply do not believe that’s what the sacred desk is for. I realize that not all of my brothers and sisters agree with this notion but I would much rather talk about what the Bible says makes a good leaders as opposed to whom I believe is God’s man/woman.

    During the last Presidential election in 2012, I was made aware of a movement of clergy called “Pulpit Freedom Sunday” where they would spend a Sunday sermon telling their flocks which candidates and parties they believe should be supported. Preachers are typically discouraged from making such statements from the pulpit because such would endanger the congregation’s non-profit status with the IRS. The rationale is that the IRS should not hamstring clergy from campaigning from the pulpit. Again, I do not agree with this because I simply do not believe a pastor should use the pulpit to stump for a particular candidate or party (that does not mean that I am opposed to talking about issues as they relate to scripture – quite the opposite). When I was asked to participate by a parishioner at the congregation I was appointed to at the time, I explained that I would much rather preach about what scripture says about leadership.

    And that’s what I did.

    Below is that sermon (more or less). Keep in mind that this is one of the first sermons I ever wrote so it’s not stellar (not that the ones I write now are great!). However, I feel that the overall message is very timely as we approach election time. How do the candidates stack up base do what God’s word says about what makes a good leader? I pray this helps you gain some insight as you decide which candidates to support.

    Jonathan

    As we approach this election season, I think it’s safe to say that we’ve all been bombarded with messages and some might even say propaganda from all sides of the political spectrum. Largely it seems like it’s all rhetoric, sound bytes and “vote for me because I’m not the other guy.” What we as Christians should take in to account more than what the media tells us is what the Bible says about leadership. What Biblical standards should we be looking for in a candidate for any kind of office or any kind of leader for that matter? Today I want to look at what the Bible says we should be looking for in our leaders and give some examples of Biblical leadership. Of course, this message is for all of us but I especially want the youth to pay attention as they are the future leaders of our church and our world. I’d like to ask them to come forward at this time so that we can say a blessing over them.

    The Bible gives us several things we should look for in our leaders. In preparing for this week’s message, I took to Facebook to ask some of my friends what they look for in a leader. Some of the responses I got included:
    • Humility
    • Wisdom
    • Seeks wise counsel
    • Willing to serve
    • Willing to listen, not just order

    Indeed, the Bible shares these qualities in what we should look for in our leaders. Let’s look at the broad spectrum of all qualifications. In 1 Timothy, Paul lays out what should be sought after in looking for elders – or pastors – of the church. Paul writes in 1 Timothy 3:1-5: This is a trustworthy saying: “If someone aspires to be an elder, he desires an honorable position. So an elder must be a man whose life is above reproach. He must be faithful to his wife. He must exercise self-control, live wisely, and have a good reputation. He must enjoy having guests in his home, and he must be able to teach. He must not be a heavy drinker or be violent. He must be gentle, not quarrelsome, and not love money. He must manage his own family well, having children who respect and obey him. For if a man cannot manage his own household, how can he take care of God’s church?

    Paul pretty plainly lays it out on the line: A leader must be honorable, have integrity, be hospitable, be able to control his/her temper, not be greedy.
    • By the way, this applies equally to men and women. Women can certainly be leaders and they should be no less wise.
    • Leadership involves being willing to pass along ones’ knowledge to the next generation in order to help raise up quality leaders for the future.
    • Being humble – not boastful, not greedy, willing to help others – is one of the most important leadership qualities there is. What kind of leader is someone who isn’t humble and who demands respect instead of commanding respect by their actions?
    • You can attract more flies with honey than you can vinegar – a good leader knows this.

    Have you ever looked at the perks that online companies offer their employees? It’s not uncommon for websites such as Google and Amazon to offer their employees things such as free lunches in an on-campus cafeteria (not like our school cafeterias thankfully!), pool tables, free massages, unlimited vacation time, and even allowing employees to bring their pets with them to work. There was a CEO of one online retail website that started offering these things to his employees when it wasn’t common to do so. Traditional CEOs told him that it was a waste, productivity would suffer and he would end up losing his shirt if he offered his employees such cool things and gave them so much freedom. It was not uncommon for this CEO to even do things like grill hamburgers for all of his employees and he even took groups of employees to amusement parks – on the clock and all expenses paid too! Today his company is well known and is enjoying success beyond what he even imagined. Because he had the vision to be a servant to his employees and to treat them exceptionally well, his company has been successful, productivity has been great and many of those who said he would fail by doing these things have gone out of business themselves.

    A leader has to be willing not only to lead and be the boss, he/she must also be willing to serve. In Mark 10, Jesus plainly tells us this when He says in verses 42-45: “You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must be the slave of everyone else. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Jesus even exemplified this when in John 13 we read that Jesus – being the very reason we are here and as the leader of His disciples – committed an act that no leader of the day would dare to do and something I doubt very many would be willing to do today. In verses 4 and 5 we read that Jesus got up from the table, wrapped a towel around His waist, poured some water and got down to wash the feet of His disciples. Imagine being there for a moment: The King of Kings and the Lord of Lords – someone we very much should be the ones lowering ourselves down to – lowered Himself to be a servant to those who follow Him. In verses 14-16 He explains to them: “And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you. I tell you the truth, slaves are not greater than their master. Nor is the messenger more important than the one who sends the message.” This is probably the absolute best example of leading by being a servant that any of us could ever find.

    There is a legend that is told of a French Monastery known throughout Europe for the exceptional leadership of a man known only as Brother Leo. Several monks took a pilgrimage to visit this extraordinary leader to learn from him. Starting out on the pilgrimage they almost immediately begin to argue over who should do certain chores.

    On the third day of their journey they met another monk also going to the monastery; he joined them. This monk never bickered about doing chores and did them dutifully. And when the others would fight about which chores to do, he would simply volunteer to do them himself. On the last day of their journey, others began to follow his example and the bickering stopped.

    When the monks reached the monastery they asked to see Brother Leo. The man who greeted them laughed. “But our brother is among you!” And he pointed to the fellow that had joined them.

    Many seek positions in leadership to serve their own interests and not that of others. There are many self serving reasons why a person may want to lead such as power, status, networking and money. But the best leaders lead because they care about people. And those are the types of leaders that lead like Brother Leo. They teach through their actions, not by words alone. They are servants, not commanders.

    Is risk-taking something that’s wise? Some might say that taking risks as a leader means that you just go out on a limb no matter what anyone says, do what you want to do anyway and hope for the best. That’s certainly the way a lot of people look at risk taking but it’s not always so haphazard. Taking risks isn’t always wise as I’m sure I don’t have to tell you. However, sometimes risks – with lots of prayer, wise counsel and benefit and consequence analysis – that will have a huge impact on the church, the household or the whole world. If you want an example of that, look no further than the founder of the Methodist movement, John Wesley.
    • John Wesley was born in 1703 in Epworth, England to Samuel and Susanna Wesley. Samuel was a priest in the Church of England.
    • John and his brother Charles were raised in the tradition of the Anglican faith and John and Charles both got the necessary education and experience to become ordained into the Anglican church themselves.
    • John went to Savannah, Georgia as a missionary in 1735. During the sea voyage to America, a big storm arose. John found himself scared to death but noticed that some Moravians on board were not only calm but even singing hymns in the midst of this storm that threatened to sink the ship. He wanted to have the peace that they had – the peace and contentment that we can have through Jesus Christ.
    • As Wesley learned about salvation through faith, he plugged away until the fateful day on May 24, 1738 when he had what he called his “Aldersgate Experience” where he heard someone reading Martin Luther’s preface to Romans. It was at that time when Wesley wrote that he “felt (his) heart strangely warmed.” The rest, as they say, is history.
    • Wesley – in spite of protests from many within the Anglican church – started what would become known as the Methodist movement, which included doctrines such as prevenient grace, sanctification through faith, Christian perfection and the then-unheard of practice of using lay local preachers to spread the gospel.
    • Of course, all was not always well with Wesley’s leadership. For example during his initial time in Georgia he denied communion to a former girlfriend and her new husband. Charges were brought against him and eventually Wesley returned to England a beaten, broken man.
    • Eventually Wesley persevered and rose above all of the bitterness and shame he experienced. It’s in large part thanks to John Wesley that we’re here today. His vision, wisdom and faith carried him through the storm and he was able to lead a movement that is still ongoing today.

    Biblical and Godly leadership qualities are things we should all strive to conduct and certainly something we should look for in our leaders no matter their office. As Christians it’s our duty to discern who these Godly leaders are. People who are first and foremost committed to Christ, people who are wise and seek wise counsel, people willing to not only lead but to serve, to lead by example and who aren’t afraid to make unpopular decisions are who should be our leaders. This certainly goes for our elected officials. As the Presidential debate is a hot topic issue, many in churches are asking their pastors to tell them who they should vote for. Well, I’m not going to do that. What I will tell you is this: Pray and ask God who He wants to be our next President. Consider all of the qualities that the Bible says make good leaders. And when you get into the voting booth, vote your conscience. Trust the Holy Spirit to guide you. He will never fail you in any situation, even in the voting booth.