Christians and OBama

I recently read an email that is going around among Christian groups condemning Barack Obama. The condemnation is not based on the political policies or history of the candidate or even on the things that Obama has said. Sadly, the condemnation of the man is based on his heritage. The email points out that Obama's biological father was a Muslim from Kenya and that his step-father, who raised him, was a radical Muslim. It points out that his mother was an Atheist and that Obama himself attended a Wahabi school, which is apparently a radical leaning Muslim school. It also cynically states that Obama went to a Catholic school and joined a United Church of Christ. The email suggest that his affiliation with the United Church of Christ is only an attempt to assuage the fears of Christians that Obama is some sort of sleeper Muslim who will destroy our Christian freedoms and country if elected, which the email argues is indeed the case.

Not a single mention is made of Obama's political positions, voting history, or even the words of his own speeches. The email is tantamount to religious bigotry and is an embarrassment to the Christian community. Christians should stop allowing themselves to be political pawns, having their fears and ignorance played upon and used by political pundits and hate mongers.

Barack Obama is not the candidate for the Christian, but not because of his parent’s beliefs, where he was born, or where he was educated. Granted, there is some concern, but since when do we judge a man based on the things of his background that were out of his control. Judge the man on his words and deeds.

The type of email that I have described angers me, because it caters to the stereotypical image of Christians as bigots, fear mongers, and ignorant and religiously arrogant people. We must stop playing this role. If Christians want to be politically active, then they should do so with integrity, love and graciousness. You who would condemn a man because his father was a Muslim and his mother was an Atheist, is your genealogy without flaw, is your heritage free of stain. It is only by God's grace that perhaps you have a Christian heritage and have a Christian worldview. Is it not possible that by God's grace a Muslim/Atheist raised boy could grow to be a God-fearing Christian man?

I'm not saying Obama is a Christian. I'm not saying that he is not a Christian. I'm saying, judge him by his fruit not by his original roots. Be Gracious.

Refreshing Times

In Acts 3:19 Peter instructs the people gathered in the portico of Solomon to "repent and return." The reason is two-fold; one part being contingent upon the other. First will come the wiping away of our sins. When we repent and return to God the blood of Jesus Christ is applied to us as detergent designed to wipe away all the stains of our sins and make us white as snow.

Second, and contingent upon the first, will come times of refreshing. These times come to us from the presence of the Lord. We can only be in the presence of the Lord if we are spotless from sin. We can only be spotless from sin if we repent and return to God.

When I read this I couldn't help but wonder, "what do the 'times of refreshing' encompass?" I've been listening to a reading from John MacArthur about the Vanishing Conscious, and it occurred to me that a seared conscious is in desperate need of refreshing, and indeed, when we come into the presence of the Lord our conscious is refreshed: it gains a clarity of thought, and rightness in judgment, and a truthfulness in its guidance of our souls.

When I come into presence of the Lord through repentance, I'm overjoyed to say, my conscious is refreshed. It tells me the truth, frees from unwarranted guilt, rebukes me when appropriate and shows me the right path. But, oh, when I am not in the presence of the Lord my conscious begins to accuse me falsely, weighing me down with guilt that is not mine. It begins to fail me as a guide and lets my flesh win over my spirit, taking me deeper into sin.

Oh, how I need Jesus. He is the only one who can refresh me and make all my members work as God designed them to work. Oh, how I need Jesus, for only in his presence do I see clearly, think rightly and act purely. Oh, how I need to repent and return to God so that I might live always in the presence of the Lord and thus enjoy refreshing times.

God, may it be so for me and for all who read this, Amen.

Principles of Leadership - Leading Up

Here are some keys to leading your leaders taken from John C. Maxwell's book "The 360 Degree Leader"

1. Lead yourself exceptionally well.
2. Lighten your leader's load.
3. Be willing to do what others won't
4. Do more than manage - lead!
5. Invest in relational chemistry.
6. Be prepared every time you take your leader's time.
7. Know when to push and when to back off.
8. Become a go-to player.
9. Be better tomorrow than you are today.

I think these are exceptional principles. I have been challenged by each of them as I've read through the chapters that discussed them. Probably my favorite is number 8. It's hard to be allow yourself to become a go-to player because you risk being run over with work, but if your are practicing the other principles I think your leaders will become better leaders and those around you will become better leaders and the work load won't get out of hand.

Being Qualified

In his book "Good to Great" Jim Collins quotes Darwin E. Smith, CEO of Kimberly Clark as saying, "I never stopped trying to become qualified for the job."

The opposite of this mindset is being apathetically content with where you are right now. I used the word "apathetically" because contentment is not wrong at all. In fact, it is one of the keys to personal sanity. But contentment in the present should always be coupled with a desire to be better tomorrow. This is, I think, a major key to success in any area of life.

So, we who desire to be successful should never stop trying to become qualified for the job. We should never stop learning. We should never stop allowing ourselves to be stretched outside of our comfort zone. We should never stop seeking for ways to be better today than we were yesterday. In fact I think this is the personal duty of every individual alive, a strong influence upon success, and a certain key to personal fulfillment