Obama in Rehoboth
1 Sam 8:7
"And the LORD said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them."
When the Prophet Samuel was old, and his sons were bums, the people petitioned Samuel for a king. Samuel was distressed. It seems that the people of Israel wanted a king so that they could be like other nations. Later in the chapter, the people make it clear that the main reason a king is wanted is for the king to lead them in battle against the very nations they were trying to emulate.
The Israelites had seen God fight their battles for them and triumph in generation's past. But, now they wanted to do whatever seemed "right in their own eyes" (and we think post-modernism is new), the people of Israel had to depend on a human figure to give them safety.
On last Sunday morning, since I am an early riser, I was up much earlier than my buddies in a hotel in Rehoboth, Delaware. About after an hour of laying in bed trying to stay quiet, I was going a bit nuts. So, I decided to dress, exit the room quietly, and go for a walk (I was jonesing some coffee, too). It is very melancholic to walk through a shore town in the middle of winter; it was deserted. Making it even more sad, was that the temps were in the low 40's and it was raining.
There were further signs, in addition to the winter and the rain, that the town was even less vibrant than usual. Stores were closed (how come there is no breakfast place along Rehoboth Ave within walking distance?). Some were just closed for the season, others were closed permanently, with the space vacated. I suppose that the way proprietors make it in Rehoboth is kind of like how bears make it over the winter. You gorge in the spring, summer, and fall, and hope you don't die of starvation over the colder months.
There was this little promenade of stores that I had missed on the way to Starbucks that I noticed on the way back to the hotel. So, I decided to walk through the way back to our lodging. It had one store where the owner had clearly lost the business involuntary. There was a sheet with a note in her handwriting (it is always easy to discern the difference between men and women's handwriting) where she thanked her customers for their patronage and loyalty.
There was a second sheet where she asked President Obama to put people back to work and to bring prosperity back to the land. I got to thinking that this kind of sentiment is what has gotten the United States in trouble to start with; not accepting God's rule, we are now looking to a cerebral skinny dude born in Hawaii to solve our problems rather than the God of the universe.
Obama's acceptance speech, despite its disclaimer that the road would be tough, had messianic overtones:
He vowed that despite the difficulties ahead: "I am absolutely certain that generations from now, we will be able to look back and tell our children that this was the moment when we began to provide care for the sick and good jobs to the jobless. This was the moment when the rise of the oceans began to slow and our planet began to heal; this was the moment when we ended a war and secured our nation and restored our image as the last, best hope on Earth."
Earlier in the speech, Obama spoke of his "Limitless faith in the capacity of the American people." Yikes....if you put your limitless faith in finite and fallen humanity, it had better be limitless because you are going to need an endless supply. He returned our ultimate and unconditional faith in him by him putting his limitless faith in us.
The dangers of oratorical brilliance and eloquent speech is that it can be long on expectation setting but short on delivery. Watching Obama's acceptance speech now makes me sad that so many of us are so gullible as to have fallen for the rhetoric. And, I don't care if the next president is Republican or Democrat, beware of the man or women who acts like he/she has answers outside of God.
It is almost comical to see our posturing politicians acting like they have the answers to the problems that beset us. A little admission of uncertainty and an attitude of humility rather than blustering and posturing, primping, and posing, could be a step in the right direction.
Faith is a great thing if it is faith in the right person. In the wrong person, it is tragic.
"And the LORD said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them."
When the Prophet Samuel was old, and his sons were bums, the people petitioned Samuel for a king. Samuel was distressed. It seems that the people of Israel wanted a king so that they could be like other nations. Later in the chapter, the people make it clear that the main reason a king is wanted is for the king to lead them in battle against the very nations they were trying to emulate.
The Israelites had seen God fight their battles for them and triumph in generation's past. But, now they wanted to do whatever seemed "right in their own eyes" (and we think post-modernism is new), the people of Israel had to depend on a human figure to give them safety.
On last Sunday morning, since I am an early riser, I was up much earlier than my buddies in a hotel in Rehoboth, Delaware. About after an hour of laying in bed trying to stay quiet, I was going a bit nuts. So, I decided to dress, exit the room quietly, and go for a walk (I was jonesing some coffee, too). It is very melancholic to walk through a shore town in the middle of winter; it was deserted. Making it even more sad, was that the temps were in the low 40's and it was raining.
There were further signs, in addition to the winter and the rain, that the town was even less vibrant than usual. Stores were closed (how come there is no breakfast place along Rehoboth Ave within walking distance?). Some were just closed for the season, others were closed permanently, with the space vacated. I suppose that the way proprietors make it in Rehoboth is kind of like how bears make it over the winter. You gorge in the spring, summer, and fall, and hope you don't die of starvation over the colder months.
There was this little promenade of stores that I had missed on the way to Starbucks that I noticed on the way back to the hotel. So, I decided to walk through the way back to our lodging. It had one store where the owner had clearly lost the business involuntary. There was a sheet with a note in her handwriting (it is always easy to discern the difference between men and women's handwriting) where she thanked her customers for their patronage and loyalty.
There was a second sheet where she asked President Obama to put people back to work and to bring prosperity back to the land. I got to thinking that this kind of sentiment is what has gotten the United States in trouble to start with; not accepting God's rule, we are now looking to a cerebral skinny dude born in Hawaii to solve our problems rather than the God of the universe.
Obama's acceptance speech, despite its disclaimer that the road would be tough, had messianic overtones:
He vowed that despite the difficulties ahead: "I am absolutely certain that generations from now, we will be able to look back and tell our children that this was the moment when we began to provide care for the sick and good jobs to the jobless. This was the moment when the rise of the oceans began to slow and our planet began to heal; this was the moment when we ended a war and secured our nation and restored our image as the last, best hope on Earth."
Earlier in the speech, Obama spoke of his "Limitless faith in the capacity of the American people." Yikes....if you put your limitless faith in finite and fallen humanity, it had better be limitless because you are going to need an endless supply. He returned our ultimate and unconditional faith in him by him putting his limitless faith in us.
The dangers of oratorical brilliance and eloquent speech is that it can be long on expectation setting but short on delivery. Watching Obama's acceptance speech now makes me sad that so many of us are so gullible as to have fallen for the rhetoric. And, I don't care if the next president is Republican or Democrat, beware of the man or women who acts like he/she has answers outside of God.
It is almost comical to see our posturing politicians acting like they have the answers to the problems that beset us. A little admission of uncertainty and an attitude of humility rather than blustering and posturing, primping, and posing, could be a step in the right direction.
Faith is a great thing if it is faith in the right person. In the wrong person, it is tragic.
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