Well, it’s official: Barack Hussein Obama will be the Democrat party’s candidate for President of the United States in this November’s election, and there is a very real possibility that on January 20, 2009 he will be sworn in as this great nation’s 44th President. This is both good news and bad news, depending on the perspective you’re looking at it from. Read on if you would like to hear mine…

First, the good news:

The nomination of Barack Obama for President finally drives the last nail into the coffin of the Jim Crow era and many of the attitudes and prejudices that brought it about in the first place. The just-completed Democratic primary race and the national polls clearly show that Americans of all races, backgrounds and genders are quite ready to elect the first African American President in our nation’s storied history. It has been a long time coming and we will all be much better off now that we have collectively reached this important and historic milestone.

Now, the bad news:

Barack Obama is not the right man for the job. As the most powerful leader on the planet and the moral and political leader of the entire free world, a President of the United States must possess the experience, judgment, and love for his/her country required to effectively do the job. In my opinion, Obama falls far short in all three of these areas.

First of all, his only experience in politics are a short stint in the Illinois State Senate and two-thirds of a single term in the U.S. Senate. We have already tried electing Presidents with this little practical experience, and the result has almost always been disastrous for the nation.

Secondly, his decisions to surround himself with people of questionable character and remain a faithful 20-year member and follower of a church and pastor that openly demonstrate a thorough disgust for the United States of America (and a huge reluctance to distance himself from them) are pretty good indicators of the type of judgment he would use when making decisions that will affect our country for years to come – perhaps forever.

And thirdly, the words and actions that he and his wife have used on the campaign trail leave no doubt that they hold our nation and its time-tested traditions in fairly low regard. In my opinion, the most important qualities that a President should have are an unquestionable love for his/her country and an intense desire to protect its citizens, their freedoms, their culture and their traditions from attack and needless changes. Without these two all-important qualities, all others are meaningless, and Obama has demonstrated that he has neither.

Of course Obama’s opponent John McCain is not without his own faults (as none of us are). In fact, he wasn’t my first choice to head the Republican ticket (or the second either for that matter). But his experience and his love for his country are long and deep, and overall his judgment has always been sound. Therefore, of the two candidates we are being asked to choose between, I will certainly be voting for McCain.

What Barack Obama has accomplished in the past year has been truly remarkable. He has managed to leverage his good looks, youthful vigor and rock-star personality into a viable shot at winning the highest job in the land. Unfortunately, I don’t believe he is up to the job. I’m glad that we as a nation are ready to elect someone other than a white male to lead our amazing country, but we really need to make sure that person is the best person for the job. After all, social and political experiments can be quite dangerous if they are poorly thought out and executed.

Matthew 26:36-45

36 – Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder.

37 – And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.

38 – Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.

39 – And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.

40 – And he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour?

41 – Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

42 – He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, thy will be done.

43 – And he came and found them asleep again: for their eyes were heavy.

44 – And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words.

45 – Then cometh he to his disciples, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.

The hours leading up to Jesus’ betrayal and crucifixion were filled with much sorrow for He knew what would soon happen to Him. When He went into the Garden of Gethsemane to pray, He took along three of His most beloved and trusted disciples to stand guard as He spoke to His Heavenly Father.

When He asked them to go with Him, Jesus already knew that they would falter and fall asleep, and indeed they did – not once, but three times. After they fell asleep the first time Jesus could have become frustrated and simply sent them away, but He wanted to have them near as He prayed. Although He knew they would fail Him, He loved them even unto death so He overlooked their human failings and allowed them to stay with Him.

Jesus’ love for his disciples knew no bounds. He was willing to overlook their faults and forgive their sins because He knew they believed in Him and trusted in Him as their personal saviour. And He loves each and every one of us just as much! He is willing to overlook our faults and forgive our sins as well because His love for us knows no bounds.

Jesus willingly died on the cross at Calvary, offering Himself up as the perfect sacrifice so that each and every one of us who chooses to accept Him as our saviour can avoid Hell and join Him for a literal eternity in the glorious place we call Heaven. Although his patience with us has its limits, His love for us does not. Click here if you would like to find out how to accept Him as your personal saviour as well!