In God We Trust

Here in the south, we've had some screwy weather lately. It went from our typical winter directly to highs in the high 80s in the blink of an eye and we've been deluged by rain (a rare occurrence). Then for the past couple days and even today, there's a brisk snap in the air and the highs are now barely stretching to the 70s. Add a few 25 mpg wind gusts, and I don't know whether to don a parka or opt for sunscreen and tank top any given day.

In the nail salon yesterday, I was talking to a gal of Asian descent and she mentioned the odd weather. I agreed that it was bizarre indeed and I wish we could just settle into a routine. She told me that ancient Chinese tradition says that odd weather like this--cool when it should be hot, up and down, etc--is an indication that God is displeased with authority. That was her word, and she was unsure if it translated precisely, but basically, government, leadership, Congress, the President--those who hold authority. The strange weather pattern was God's way of showing that what the "authority" was doing was unwise or not His desire.

Interesting. There are many views on what the good ole government is doing these days--many opinions on the bail-outs, nationalized medicine, taxes, the fledgling economy. I try to avoid discussing politics because you're just going to tick off one side or the other and rarely can you alter someone's opinion on this sort of thing. You're pro-O or anti-O, waving the red flag or the blue one. But one thing is for certain: the country is torn over it all and I wonder if God's voice is coming through in a way that most modern folks wouldn't consider but the ancient Chinese follow closely. It's rare that you hear of God and politics together these days anyway, unless it's the token speech culmination "May God Bless America" or when people begin discussing the removal of our national motto--voted on and resoundingly passed by Congress in 1956--"In God We Trust" from our currency, or taking God out of the Pledge of Allegiance. Incidentally, how contradictory to wish for God to bless America but then want to remove all traces of Him from currency, pledge of allegiance, school football games, prayer in schools, etc.?

Every wonder why God is distanced from politics now? It wasn't so long ago that God guided everything we did--from the top of the government to the poorest of people.

Abraham Lincoln said: "The way is plain, peaceful, generous...if followed, the world will forever applaud, and God must forever bless."

JFK said: "...the belief that the rights of man come not from the generosity of the state but from the hand of God."

Martin Luther King Jr said: "Free at last, free at last, thank God Almighty, we are free at last."

God is the foundation of conscious--personal conscious and national conscious. These leaders and many before and after them strove to follow God's will when helping to direct our country. It helped them determine what was morally correct. Yet as recently as our last president, George W. Bush, it seems more popular to now ridicule any leader who openly walks with or mentions God favorably.

Regardless of religious choosing or political views, it's scary to remove a higher power from our everyday life. If you remove God from politics, what then drives our national conscious and helps guide our leaders to choose right from wrong? Over 200 years ago, God's values drove our forefathers as they created a new country. Why would that be different today? And if it's not God who helps to determine right and wrong, what does?

I don't mean to come across preachy; it's something that I really wonder about and consider alarming. What the gal said to me yesterday reminded me of a two part sermon given at my church a few weeks ago. If you have some time on your hands, check it out. A message titled God & Country, it really gives you something to think about--delivered by an absolutely dynamite speaker, Andy Stanley. He's not a fire and brimstone guy shoving religion down everyone's throat, so don't worry. He's just down to earth, drawing parallels between the Bible and what's going on today, and giving us all food for thought in a way that is enjoyable to listen to. Find it here:

http://www.northpoint.org/messages

Scroll to the God & Country Messages and watch one or either parts. Well worth the time.