I've been following some of the national election coverage and keeping an eye on local developments It's a bit discouraging. National trust in elected officials is at an all time low. Its understandable. If the election were tomorrow I'd choose to vote for candidates who believe that:
1. People matter. All people. White people, black people, brown people, straight people, gay people, citizens, immigrants (legal and not) the young, the old, the rich and the poor.
2. Some of those people might need more help than the others. Sometimes it's their own fault they need help. More often it's not. Bob Pierce, the founder of World Vision, once said that "our hearts should break over the thing that break the heart of God". From my vantage point I want to err on the side of grace, not judgment. I'm not suggesting we abandon the law but when the law turns its back on those in need we disobey God.
3. Sound byte answers aren't really answers. They sound silly too.
4. Waste and mismanagement is killing us and it can't continue to happen.
5. It's possible and desirable to find common ground with the other party. This is a no brainer I think.
6.The discouraged majority is looking for high road leadership.
7. The courage to make tough decisions is desirable.
8. Signing a pledge is not a leadership strategy. In fact, it limits your creative options.
9. You don't have to have a ready answer for everything. And anyone who thinks you should doesn't understand the complexity of the issues before us.
10. The problems we have will require a shared sacrifice to fix. That means the average voter is going to have to realize that we are going to have to be part of the solution. That solution is going to cost us all.
11. A moral compass should be acquired. There is a higher authority who is available for consultation.
12. We're not playing games. The economy, terrorism, corruption , entitlement issues (the most entitled seem to be those of us who have much), global hunger, disease, sex trafficking, a crumbling infrastructure, health care, etc. are not issues to be trifled with.
What's on your list? What are you looking for in your next alderman, state rep, congressman, senator, and president. Do you really know? If not, why? For if we don't know what/who we want we can only blame ourselves for the mess we'll find ourselves in.
As a person involved in Christian leadership I feel a deep obligation to talk about the issues of our day. You'll notice in this post that I'm not asking you to cast your vote for a particular party or candidate. That isn't my role. I am asking you to care deeply enough about the elections coming up that you will approach it prayerfully and thoughtfully. Many people are giving up on the political process. Not this time around ...please. Your list might be different than mine. That's fine. I'm OK with that. I'm not as OK with people who are allowing some political commentator, religious programmer, or cynical punditainer make their choices for them. That's not why God gave us a brain and a heart. We are called upon to make informed choices rooted in a clear understanding of the issues and the variety of options before us. To make uninformed choices seems to be a waste of the giftings God has given us.
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