History is made.
This is incredible. Whether you voted for Obama, or McCain you really do have to sit back and recognize the progress America has shown with the election of the first African-American president of the United states.
I was thinking of it from this angle. I know many Christians who think that this signifies impending judgement on America, but what if its not? What if God willed that Obama be in office, to smash the racial barriers that still exist in America today? Our history as a country has deep roots in slavery and racism. African Americans were only considered 3/5 of a person when the constitution was written. Only 40 years ago, a law was passed guaranteeing African-Americans the right to vote. How fitting is it that our first African-American president is a product of an African Kenyan man and a white American woman? It paints a beautiful picture of how far our country has come. My generation is much less educated on the civil rights movement, and the events leading up to it and it seems that we see and make judgements based on skin color much less than any other generation. I am so proud to be an American right now.
This election is historic, and I am truly in awe.
To my fellow Christians who are distressed and disappointed by these results: Please remember who it is who holds our future. It is not a man, not a system, not anything we on earth can control. Our future is in God’s hands, and His will will be done whether we like it or not, whether we agree with it or not. Remember, fear does not come from God, nor does worry or anxiety. We need to continue praying for Barack Obama, and we need to hold out hope that he will be a good president.
All in all, this is an amazing time in history.
A Day in the Life... 
November 5, 2008 at 11:31 am
Obama is still not the first “African American” president. Firstly, there is no such place as “Africa American” so there is no one who is “African American.” Secondly, Obama is just as much a product of his “white” parentage as he is his “black” parentage, yet everyone focuses on the “black” as if he was 100% of “black” parentage. That to me is very racist.
And let’s for sake of argument use the term “African American” – since he is only half, how can he be called the whole?
If Obama had run as a white person, he would not have gotten the vote. Yet he could have run as a white person just as much as he ran as a black person. Again, I find this whole idea to be racist.
Obama grew up in a priviledged culture with absolutely no wants and yet he pretended to empathize with those who grow up in the slums and ghettos. He may be charismatic, but he has nothing of substance to give. He had lots of platitudes of “change” and “hope,” but the only change in Washington will be who is President – the politics will remain the same because both parties are corrupt.
I heard there were many “black” people saying that NOW slavery is over. That is totally ridiculous, and a victim mentality being propagated by the left.
If Obama manages to accomplish many of the things he claimed he would do, then the country will be the worse off for it: more abortions, more homosexual marriage, more taxes, less freedom of speech.
God gave us the leadership we deserved.
November 5, 2008 at 4:18 pm
Glenn it is obvious you do not understand or care about this amazing milestone America has come to. This is sad to me. It is especially baffling because, you have SEEN with your own eyes, the struggles of African Americans in this country. You saw and heard firsthand about the civil rights movement. You have heard the speeches of Dr. King and recall the days he walked on the earth. The civil rights movement was a spiritual battle. Why act like slavery and oppression did not happen? WHy take the time out of your day to dampen the joy I am feeling about the advancement we have made as a people. To suggest the very title is racist is insane to me! Is someone referring to themselves as “Asian American”, or “American Indian”, or “Native American”, or “Irish American” or “Italian American” also racist to you??? It should be if you are consistent with your logic.
They are African American, because our ancestors were brought over from AFRICA and forced to be slaves here, in AMERICA. Africans never ever wanted to come over here, so why shame them for holding on to their roots by declaring themselves “African American?” That is just silly.
I, like Obama, am bi-racial yet have been referred to as black almost all of my life. Sometimes I correct people, and sometimes I dont. Never have i taken this misconception personally! How is this a racist statement unless it is said in a negative way??? I am PROUD to have African American roots, so no I do not take offense to that assumption! Yes, Obama is as much white as he is black, but guess what. He looks more like a black man than he does a white man which is why people refer to him as black. A bi-racial man in the 60s got the same poor treatment as a black man in the 60s. Period.
So what are you saying, that he should have ran as a white man? I think Obama did an excellent job leaving race out of this!!! He talked at LENGTH about his mother, who was white. in fact he talked more about his mother, than he did about his father.
Anyway, i believe if Obama were white, he STILL would have gotten the vote because bottom line is McCain ran a poor campaign. He has yet to understand that a different generation is taking control. A generation who is not afraid to change direction when something is not working. One who sees more than color when looking at someone. A generation that, after 8 years of failed policies, decided to give the other guys a shot. Obama did an excellent job at engaging this generation through technology and voter encouragement through the community, etc. If he were a white man who ran the same exact campaign, there is no doubt in my mind he would still be the next president of the United States.
And how can you say he “pretends to empathize?” You do not know his heart. You do not know if he empathizes or not. Be careful how you judge. Judging by facts are one thing, but you can not judge someone on how you think they probably feel. You do not have to grow up in the ghetto in order to empathize with someone who did. Maybe the empathetic heart Christ calls us to have, is something you should try to take hold of regarding the issues of race in America.
And please, the republican party, under the guise of Christianity has promoted the upholding of segregation laws and fought tooth and nail for the confederates to keep their “rights”. I’m so glad God had other plans. To think that God would allow such racism to flourish, and never be dealt with is silly.
Yeah, America is going to be a more difficult place to live out Christianity. Doesnt adversity bring us closer to the Lord? Doesnt it force us to rely on a true living breathing relationship with Jesus Christ rather than falling in to lukewarm religion?? Am I the only crazy person looking forward to these days????? YEah, i may have less money and be less comfortable but guess what. Everything I have is the Lords, and whatever is done with my “stuff” doesnt matter. It is just “stuff”. If Obama is a “socialist” ready to steal from the rich to give to the poor, then so be it. Its all God’s anyway, and I trust that He is soverign and what is done with the money will work for His will!
Glenn, you and me and all other Christians need to be praying for President Elect Obama. Why give up hope before he even begins? Why a pessamistic attitude about the state of our country? Why assume God can not change his heart? Why?? Isnt God big enough? My thinking is this. For Obama, it is probably just now sinking in that he is going to be president of the United states. He claims to be a man of faith. There is a possiblity he will go to the Bible for answers, guidence, etc. We should pray that the word of God transforms His heart, and he becomes a wonderful instrument FOR the Lord, not against! I hope he is a great president. God is bigger than all of this. Just because YOU think hes judging us doesnt mean he is, and it certainly doesnt mean we shouldnt be on our knees for our leadership. That is what we are told to do, and that is what we should be doing.
November 7, 2008 at 4:32 pm
A few thoughts in response to your comments. Number one, Obama was not a descendent of African slaves, so he is not part of that catagory. Number two, no one should be a hyphenated American; you are either American or you are not. Can we be proud of our heritage and celebrate it? Yes. But why is it only this latest generation who has to balkanize our nationality? I have English ancestry, but I don’t call myself and Anglo-American. I have Irish and Scottish Ancestry, but I don’t call myself an Irish-American or a Scottish-American. I also have Jewish, German, Welsh and even Wamponaug Indian ancestry but I don’t hyphenate any of then. Be an American – one nation out of many. That was the origin of our nation. And one thing that must be remembered about the whole slavery issue is that it was Africans who sold their own people to the slavers, yet it is always spoken as a crime of the slavers themselves. Both sides were guilty.
By the way, “Native American” describes anyone born here. It is a very distasteful PC term. Call them Aborigine (original people) or Indians as tradition, but don’t call them “Native American.” Even at the beginning Indians were native to America – they came here from the Orient.
In my whole life I have met more black racists than white racists and yet it’s whites who are always blamed for the racial divide in this nation. Slavery ended almost 150 years ago yet race-baiters like Jesse Jackson and Louis Farrakhan want to make it still happening. We left Jim Crow laws behind decades ago, yet the whine is still that blacks are not given equal opportunity, which is one of the claims of the Obama campaign.
Obama is still not the first black American to become President – that won’t happen until someone who has both parents black becomes president. I don’t believe he should have run as a black man or as a white man, but just as a man and leave the skin color out of the equation. He was promoted as a black man with the majority blacks and they see him as one of their own, when he is really more a part of the white priviledged culture wearing dark skin. The reason I said he wouldn’t have made it as a white person was because a large percentage of his votes was based on his skin color and the media promotion of him being black. He should run solely on merit, and who else could have run for president with only 143 days active Senate duty and virtually no political experience?
I believe Obama pretended to empathize the same way he pretended a lot of his beliefs; he flip-flopped almost daily in what he proclaimed as his belief. Since he proved himself untrustworthy, I have to take all his statements with discernment.
You are correct tha McCain ran a bad campaign, but he was a bad candidate to begin with. The Republican party is not even close to being a Christian party – they are liberals who haven’t done much more for this country than the Democrats. The only difference is that they aren’t 100% pro-abortion, and Obama is the most pro-abortion candidate ever, let alone pro-homosexual unions/marriage. He has promised to further both agendas, which is one thing which made him a poor Presidential choice.
By the way, it was the Democrats who supported slavery and the Republicans who ended it.
Yes God can change Obama’s heart, but he spent 20 years listening to blather from a black liberation theology teacher in a liberal denomination who wouldn’t know real Bible teaching if it bit them. Perhaps if Obama attended a real Christian Church he might learn the true gospel and repent of his advocacy for abortion and homosexual behavior. We can only pray that the Holy Spirit will open his heart and mind to the truth before he does too much moral damage.
Enjoy your trip to the Apologetics conference. Those are always very educational.
Glenn
November 10, 2008 at 1:38 am
Glenn, thank you for your comments.
we will have to agree to disagree on this, which is fine.
However I totally and completely agree with your last paragraph.