ABOUT FAITH & FREEDOM

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Is This "Awakening" Great?

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Millions of people are meeting in rallies and town hall venues across the nation. From Washington DC to Washington State, citizens are expressing their concerns about the direction our country is heading. Democrats are running away from this election, while Republicans and Independents are running toward it.

America has awakened and citizens are motivated to change the "change."

So much for apathy. Bring on the activism.

And that's a good thing.

We are awake and sweeping political change is almost certain in this election.

But is this the beginning of a "great" awakening or simply a political correction?

Is this a rush to restore our privileges and prosperity, without attention to our principles?

With a $42,000 debt attached to every newborn in America, unemployment too high, no real hope for improvement and a rush toward socialism and the "remaking of America," this election is indeed about the economy. It must be.

But we must not forget the principles.

The historic "Great Awakening" which had 3 maybe 4 waves and was responsible for charting the course for the most successful nation in the history of the world; was a spiritual not political one.

Evangelical Protestant ministers shaped the direction of America. Their strong biblical sermons created a profound sense of conviction, redemption, restoration and hope based on biblical Truth.

Jonathan Edwards, George Whitefield and other preachers elicited an emotional and spiritual response from their audiences. America was "awakened" and it became the "City on a Hill."

This awakening shaped the concepts and principles of the American Revolution, the framing of the Constitution and the blessing, prosperity, generosity and freedom that followed.

Not only has America prospered, but we have blessed the world through our Christian charity.

A political adjustment or awakening is temporary at best. It's not sustainable.

I have heard Newt Gingrich say more than once of the 1994 political revolution, "They elected us to change Washington, but Washington changed us."

I have repeatedly heard this election is about the economy, not about the so-called "social" issues or principles. And it certainly should be about an economy that is in free fall.

However, if we see this election as merely about privilege and prosperity, any political correction will be short term and ultimately disappointing.

A true "Awakening" begins in the heart, with a rededication to the Judeo-Christian principles upon which this country was built, then manifests itself in the collective politics of the Republic.

President Eisenhower once said, "A people that values its privileges above its principles soon lose both."

All solutions to human challenges are found in spiritual principles.

Be Prayerful. Be Discerning. Be Active.

__________
Gary Randall
President
Faith and Freedom

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