Blogger's Note: Generally, I don't spend much time on this blog talking about politics. But occasionally, I feel compelled to draw from the political landscape in order to make a broader spiritual application. Today is one of those days. Please note that when I use the word "right" in my post, I am NOT talking about "right wing" or the politics of "the right." I use the term "right" as in "right and wrong." In all things, politics included, I believe there is Right and there is Wrong. Simply put, God is Right...Anti-God is Wrong. We should never pray that God be on our side, but rather pray that we are on God's side.
In the aftermath of the presidential election, I've been hearing/reading a lot of comments regarding "the majority" and "the will of the people." Typically, this phrase is being used to tell "dissenters" (peopwho aren't le happy with Obama's philosophies and planned policies) that they need, in effect, to sit down and shut up. After all, they are told, the majority has spoken.
Personally, I'm a strict constitutionalist. I'm a believer in states' rights. And I'm a supporter of democratic rule of law. Our nation isn't a democracy. It's a democratic republic, and I'm okay with that. I understand how voting works, and I'm okay with that too. I realize that Obama was elected to office by winning the proper number of electoral college votes and that Obama also won the popular vote.I'm not clamoring for a recount or a revote. I realize that Obama won.
My problem is with people foolishly thinking that just because "the majority" voted for Obama it must mean the majority is right. I understand that when it comes to voting, majority rules. But that doesn't make the majority right.Too many times in history, the majority has been wrong.
There are the easily-acknowledged examples such as Hitler (elected by a democratic vote) and Nazi Germany.
Thankfully, the outnumbered colonies and patriots who started the American Revolution didn't yield to King George's majority. Thankfully, Moses didn't listen to the majority when they clamored for a golden cow to worship. Thankfully, Caleb and Joshua didn't let go of God's command just because they were outnumbered in opinion by the other ten spies. Thankfully, David didn't listen to the majority when they said Goliath couldn't be defeated. The majority can be wrong.
And, sadly, the majority usually is...both on the larger scale of life and on our smaller personal scale. We are called to be set apart, to embrace persecution, to know that if the world hated Christ, the world will hate us too. But don't let the hate of others grind you down.
Don't let the majority pressure you into silence. What's right is right, no matter how few people are on the side of right. The Bible warns that in the last days MANY will fall away from the faith. This world will continue to wax worse and worse, and the ranks of the right grow smaller and smaller.
But don't lose heart. Continue to stand up for your beliefs and constitutional rights. First and foremost, PRAY for your president, that we may lead quiet and peaceable lives. And learn to see with spiritual eyes and remember what the prophet Elisha said to his servant in 2 Kings 6:16: "Don't be afraid. Those who are with us are more than those who are with them."
6 comments:
Excellent. The spiritual application is exactly right. =)
And for your friends who may not be interested in a spiritual application, you might want to share with them this quote I posted a week or so before the election (thinking of all the liberal hollywood elite who are so enarmored with Obama)...“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it's time to pause and reflect.” ~ Mark Twain
here, here, mlm.
we also have to apply all of these thoughts to our own daily lives. we are learning and building our own characters to stay true to the right.
amen, sister, tell it like it is! the "right" way has always been the hardest to choose. to stand up to the opposition and stick by your higher principles is not the popular thing to do. and for too many people, being in the majority also ensures being accepted and accommodated. it is more challenging to swim upstream against the flow. you must have courage, stamina, endurance, fortitude and a heapload of faith in doing the "right" thing.
like you, i am not talking just politics. the political scene is subject to the winds of time, to the most pressing social issues, to who is most able to support their campaign and who has the most charisma, blah, blah, blah! but the "right and wrong" of individual decisions, actions, and choosing sides is a more important matter! one must have an independent governing guideline to make that choice. a guideline that never changes, always produces the "right" outcome, and prospers the one who follows it in the most secure way.
yes, "walk wisely" in these last days. there will be multi-fold opportunities to do otherwise. you may feel alone sometimes, vulnerable, like a sore thumb among other louder voices and invitations to join the crowd. remember, narrow is the way and few there be that find it. but for those who do, the rewards are eternal!
gee, just after posting my previous comment, i found this story on the internet. thought it added a little plus to the intent of the post - hope you do too.
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Wed Nov 19, 2008 3:50 pm EST
J.P. Hayes is as honest as we like to think we are
By Jay Busbee
The true test of a man's character is what he does when no one is watching. John Wooden said that, or maybe it was Spider-Man. Whatever, it still holds true; being noble and upstanding is easy enough when you've got people watching, but when you're alone with yourself, when you could do the wrong thing (or avoid the right thing) and get away with it, well -- that's when you find out what kind of person you are.
By that standard, then, J.P. Hayes is among the best that sports has to offer. He played a nonconforming ball for a single hole of the second stage of Q School last weekend. He realized it more than a day after the "violation," called it on himself, and thus disqualified himself from Q School ... with some severe, career-altering effects down the line.
So how did this go down? So easily, you'll cringe:
On his 12th hole of the first round at Deerwood Country Club last Wednesday, Hayes' caddie reached into his golf bag, pulled out a ball and flipped it to Hayes, who missed the green with his tee shot. He then chipped on and marked his ball. It was then that Hayes realized the ball was not the same model Titleist with which he had started his round. That was in violation of the one-ball rule, which stipulates that a player must play the same model throughout a round.
Okay, so, two-stroke penalty, no big deal. He recovered well enough to put himself in position to finish in the top 20 and advance to the third and final round of Q School. The top 25 finishers in that round, plus ties, earn exempt status for the entire 2009 PGA season. So, breathe deep, think about how close you came to disaster, then tee it up for the next round.
Only, while Hayes was breathing deep, he realized something else -- not only did he play the wrong ball, he might have played a ball that wasn't even approved for play at all.
"It was a Titleist prototype, and somehow it had gotten into my bag," he said. "It had been four weeks since Titleist gave me some prototype balls and I tested them. I have no idea how or why it was still in there ... I called an official in Houston that night and said, 'I think I may have a problem. He said they'd call Titleist the next day. I pretty much knew at that point I was going to be disqualified."
Now, the easy move here would be to either do nothing or blame the caddy. Hayes rose above both those temptations, putting all the blame on himself and asserting that everybody else on the PGA in his shoes would have done the exact same thing. We'll never know, but let's hope so.
Also, Hayes already has more than $7 million in career earnings, so it's not like he'd consigned himself to another year working the counter at the Quik Stop. But still, knowing you're taking yourself out of the running for a year of career stability and wealth takes some serious situational ethics.
Would you do it?
Really?
pilgrim: that last story could have been a post all to itself... I like it. Must ask hubby if he read about that guy.
I'd never thought about the election in the terms you point out. This post actually soothes my weary soul as I've despaired at the thought of Obama winning the majority vote.
I wish all the homosexuals in California would get a grip on the fact that the majority has spoken TWICE in that state. The majority vote is the way our government works and the majority of America "thankfully" still thinks (rightfully I might add) that marriage is between one woman and one man.
I second the "Thankfully's" you listed as examples of steel back-boned Bible folks who didn't bend just because the people went astray and wanted their own way in spite of God's will for them. Too much of that going on in the churches today. People creating stinks just like the Israelites who were so carnal they couldn't even wait for Moses to get back from spending some time with God.
One more 'thankfully'... so glad Christians haven't taken to the streets and violence in disappointment over Obama's election like the California Gays... we'd probably be strung up from trees if we did.
Your advice is best. Pray for the President. Pray for any leader who has authority over us. Bosses, Pastors, Teachers, Parents...
God has given us prayer as the avenue for changing things in the earth.
THEN... get out there and help get the message out of what true conservatives believe. Our core values make the economy move and grow... NOT taxing the people!
Thanks, mlm, for always sharing a sound and thoughtful word.
Your meems is proud of you, my sweet.
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