Sen. Barack Obama has some nerve. I mean that as a compliment. His first stop on the campaign trail after effectively clinching the Democratic presidential nomination was Bristol, Va., of all places. During Thursday’s record-setting heat, more than 2,000 people squeezed into his “town-hall meeting” at the Virginia High School gym, and no one knows how many more would have attended if there had been space.
Imagine: His first real step of the national campaign came in small-town, NASCAR territory, the birthplace of country music, a region usually passed over by presidential candidates, especially Democrats. John F. Kennedy was the last one to stop here, almost a half century ago. Politics deal in symbolism, and Obama was sending signals.
And he came to the old Bible belt, where religion is part of the landscape and many citizens vote as an act of devotion. So while people of faith in this region – most of them evangelical Christians, by far – might appreciate how Obama writes and speaks about his own Christian faith, they won’t necessarily vote for him.
Not only do his positions on several hot-button issues, including abortion and same-sex unions, run counter to typical evangelical stances. Even his religion is a lightning rod, partly because of his relationship with a controversial former pastor and partly because of lies circulating on the Internet that have more to do with fear or bigotry than with fact. (No, Obama is not a Muslim and never has been.)
So how can he hope to appeal to voters here, at least well enough to gain a hearing?
That’s a question I asked several people attending Thursday’s event. (I picked them randomly, except to make sure I spoke with men and women, young and old, black and white. Everyone I talked with was either uncommitted or leaning to Obama.)
Carl Shoupe, a disabled coal miner from Benham, Ky., who introduced himself as a born-again Christian, said, “(Obama) has to make himself available in this area and show people he’s really concerned about the working class of people and about restoring the middle class.” (Obama talked about such topics Thursday, particularly the economics of health care.)
Shoupe, a registered Democrat and union member, attends a Pentecostal church. “It’s time for us to elect someone who knows about our common plight and has been there,” he said. “That’s basically where I think Obama is at. He was raised in single-parent family and all that.”
“He has drawn on his faith, and that should appeal to most people here,” said Brendan McSheehy from Abingdon, Va., a Roman Catholic who called himself politically independent. “He needs a reaching-out process, and he needs to understand the positions of those who would be his constituency. Today’s (meeting is) a good example.”
Jack Garland, a Southern Baptist minister from Emory, Va., is still undecided but thinks Obama is on the right track, largely because of the candidate’s opposition to the Iraqi war.
“He should continue to say what he’s been saying from God’s holy word,” he said. “He’s been clear in his stance as far as morality is concerned. I’ve heard him speak many times, and I see no inconsistencies at all in his comments.”
According to Donna Kuczko, a school teacher from Abingdon, Obama must “find a way to calm the fears” of people who are influenced too much by “media who taint the news” (naming Fox News in particular) and “crazy e-mails” that slander Obama or misrepresent his positions.
Kuczko, who grew up in the region and attends Highlands Fellowship, an evangelical congregation, said she is “totally against abortion,” but thinks Christians should not be one-issue voters.
“I’m concerned about a lot of other serious issues, such as the fact that we do not as Americans start wars,” she said. “As Americans, we don’t behave the way we are behaving with Guantanamo Bay. I’ve been around the world, and I am positive that global warming is a reality. It’s a serious issue.”
Paulette Cathey of Kingsport is a registered Republican and attends Colonial Heights Christian Church. She’s a social conservative, but she’s thinking about voting for Obama.
“I haven’t voted for a Democrat for a long time,” she said. “Nobody’s perfect, and candidates may not be everything I believe in, but that won’t happen until we get to heaven.”
Until then, Cathey said, “We need to continue to pray, whoever our leaders are.”
First published in the Johnson City (Tenn.) Press, 7 June 2008.
With all that is taking place today, it’s no revelation that the end is near. Everything that could go wrong is going wrong. People are unable to discern the signs of the time and their events. America has dismissed God from our schools and government, whereby forsaking what is holy, righteous and good. We have lost our moral compass and standard for righteousness and now, every type of wickedness has manifested itself. Laws are being made and implemented to control all that is out of control, while losing more rights. We’ve gone beyond the point of no return. We’re too self-absorbed to notice the coming events around the bend. We could talk about which candidate to choose, but it’s going to take more then a president to see America healed. We have but one choice and one choice only. America must repent for her wickedness and reinstate God if we’re to see things turn around! Other wise, more devastation is on its way and soon!
Has God not said:
Do not be deceived and deluded and misled; God will not allow Himself to be sneered at (scorned, disdained, or mocked by mere pretensions or professions, or by His precepts being set aside). [He inevitably deludes himself who attempts to delude God.] For whatever a man sows, that and that only is what he will reap. For he who sows to his own flesh (lower nature, sensuality) will from the flesh reap decay and ruin and destruction, but he who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. Galatians 6:7-8 Amp. We must never support anyone who opposes the Bible for gain and especially when taken it out of context!
When we allow ourselves to be deceived by those we elect, without knowing their position with God, we deceive ourselves and have ourselves only to blame. We must always investigate those we seek to elect and their record must include a godly righteousness before placing them into their respective office of leadership. Anything less is what we’re already facing and will never work! By doing so, we ensure godly judges in our Supreme Court who will enforce the Constitution and Bill of Rights, who cannot be manipulated into legislating law, as has been the case. We will not succumb to the whims of special interest groups or crocked legislators that enlist their selfish ambitions for money.
We must sustain our vote by prayer and elect those we know to be on the side of righteousness that will never sanction the support of murdering children by partial birth abortion. Whether people know it or not, we will give our account for allowing such atrocities done to children. Vote for godly wisdom, not man’s wisdom.
Vote wise, vote for McCain and Palin for the healing of America and everything else will fall in place.
Advocate4Good
Comment by Advocate4Good — September 17, 2008 @ 3:39 pm |