MAY GOD GIVE US BACKBONE

I am currently attempting to walk slowly through the Psalms, learning more about the presence and power of God in our lives, as David and other Psalmists knew it.

As I started reading at Ps 11 and then into 12, I found myself thinking about the political situation we have in our country today.  Consider these excerpts:

The Lord is in His holy temple; the Lord is on his heavenly throne. 

He observes the sons of men, his eyes examine them 11:4

…but the wicked… his soul hates.  11:5

For the Lord is righteous, he loves justice…. 11:7

“Because of the oppression of the weak and the groaning of the needy,

I will now arise”, says the LORD.  12:5

The Lord comes to this rescue at David’s pleading:

Help, Lord, for the godly are no more; the faithful have vanished from among men.  Everyone flatters his neighbor; their flattering lips speak with deception.

12:1-2

Jumping back to Psalm 5:

Not a word from their mouth can be trusted, their heart if filled with destruction.  Their throat is an open grave; with their tongue they speak deceit. 5:9

And, going all the way back to Psalm 2, we find:

Why (how dare) the nations conspire and the people plot in vain?

The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord.

2:1-2

The one enthroned in heaven laughs; and the Lord scoffs at them.

Then He rebukes them with his anger and terrifies them in his wrath… 2:4-5

Therefore, you kings, be wise, be warned, you rulers of the earth.

Serve the Lord with fear and trembling. 2:10

Then back to the beginning Psalm:

Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or stand in the way of sinners, or sit in the seat of mockers. 1:1

He is like a tree, planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither.  Whatever he does prospers. 1:2

So what am I seeing here?  I am seeing Psalm 12:8

The wicked freely strut about when what is vile is honored among men.

Somewhere along the line, conservatives (the grass root Christians and others with common sense and values that mean something,) have allowed many things to pass right by us on the way to being comfortable and not making waves. We have given in to the pressures of the world and have compromised integrity to the point that it no longer means anything to those who need it badly as they rise up to lead in this country.

So what do we do next?  We search the Word of God for promises and prayerfully claim them in our distress.  We set ourselves up to pay attention and look for ways that changes can be made in turning the tide back, however slowly, to common sense and common values.  We elect people who speak with honor, if possible, or the next best thing, if not.  The next best thing?  Perhaps the one who lies the least or at least in the right direction? 

Sometimes it is just plain hard not to throw our votes away by voting for the one we know is righteous in our eyes but has no chance of winning.  This can, and often does assure the election of the most undesirable candidate.  This happened in 2010.  Many people refused to vote for Obama, but also refused to vote for the only man running who had the power to put him out of office. He was too middle.  He was too Mormon.  He was too distant. But he could have put Obama out of office. 

Sometimes we need to use our voice at the polls to put someone out of office, even if the one we vote for is not ideal to put into office.  He believed in common sense and common values and we picked him apart until he bled.  We are to blame for what is happening in this country because we did not vote Obama out of office when we had the chance. It was that close.

Then we need to keep each other updated and alert to ways available to sway this country back into common sense.  It is said that this idea may be hopeless; but nothing is hopeless with God.  We need to pray.  We need to pray a lot and we need to talk more and we need to speak up to those who continually put us, and common sense down.  We need to get some backbone and God is the only one I know who has any.  We need to turn to Him and listen to Him.  We need to practice common sense and push for common sense wherever we can.  And we need to be willing to vote the most evil out of office even when his opponent is questionable to us on some issues.

We need to prepare ourselves for the upcoming elections and strive to make sure that the one who replaces Obama is no one who worships at his feet or has the same goals that he has.  We must watch for every opportunity to set in motion that which will get him and his ilk out of office, even if we do not solidly support the opposition.  We must start there.  And we must do it by promoting common sense and common values, every chance we get. And we must stop taking pot-shots at the opponent and start taking positive shots at the one who can replace the one we need to replace.  We need to support change with our positive voices as well as our ballots.

May God give us strength, wisdom and backbone as we pray for and strive for a huge change to the better in this country. Amen.