What She Thinking
By Show Contributor Jen
I recently heard a message
from Dr. R.C. Sproul that had a huge impact on me, and it was while
pondering its application that I was inspired to write this blog.
Imagine
our country having the same president for 52 years.
No, not this current
president (Heaven Forbid!), but a good, God-fearing, wise president. One
under whom our country enjoyed unsurpassed prosperity. One who
surrounded himself with wise advisors, who built up our military and
held our mightiest foe in check, whose strength, wisdom, and benevolence
was known and respected throughout the entire world. Imagine growing up
as a child with this man as president, getting married, having
children, having grandchildren—all under the reign of this godly man.
Imagine the stability you would feel as an American, the patriotism, the
pride, the security. Imagine how much trust you would feel in this
amazing man.
And then
imagine, in the 52nd year of his reign, this president did
something arrogant and horrendous—a scandal that rocked the world. The
president is removed from power, and remains secluded until his eventual
death.
Imagine the shattered
security, goodwill, and trust.
If you're familiar with the Old Testament, you
might recognize this as more than a hypothetical. It is the Biblical
account of King Uzziah, who reigned in Judah during the time of the
prophets Zechariah and Isaiah. He became king when he was sixteen. By
Biblical and historical accounts, he was a good and just ruler who
constantly sought to the right thing. In the end, however, he became
arrogant and started to believe his own P.R., if you will, and
challenged God.
God won.
Uzziah lived out the rest of
this life as a lonely, secluded leper. Judah was devastated and
never enjoyed the same prosperity again.
There are several lessons we
can learn from Uzziah, not the least of which being the frailty of
humanity. The best, most godly man on earth is still just that…an
earthly man who will fail eventually. I wish I would learn this lesson
and taken it to heart, but I'll admit it still hurts when men and women
I've trusted have let me down. Politicians, heads of organizations,
religious leaders, and yes, even conservative talk show hosts, at
various times I've put my trust in them all. They've all failed. Yes, by
now you'd think I would have learned that only ONE will never let me
down.
But that's a lesson for
another day. The silver lining from the story of Uzziah shows another
more subtle, but eternally rewarding lesson: the fall of one hero gives
rise to another. The vacuum left by Uzziah paved the way for a nice,
well-educated, well-respected but quiet man to become, arguably, the
most renowned prophet in history. Loved and trusted by the common man in
Judah,
Isaiah warned them to turn back to God. God rewarded Isaiah with a
glimpse of His Holiness, and revealed to Isaiah that He would eventually
send His Son to save the world (Is. 7:14).
Right now in our world, the
distrust of politicians and leaders of any kind is almost palpable.
American prosperity may have seen its finest day in the rearview mirror.
Our trust and security are rattled. The fall of so many we thought we
trusted has left a vacuum.
But…
People are stepping up to fill the void, and
let's face it, many are people who probably would never have considered
getting involved (or we wouldn't have considered supporting them) if we
had continued to be inured to corruption by our comfort.
Ask people like Kent
Sorenson, Tom Shaw, Kim Pearson, Vicki Stogdill, and Chad Steenhoek, if
they thought they'd be running for office someday. Of course not! But
when our toy soldiers all fell down, people like them stepped up. It's
exciting to consider their potential. Yes, they are human. One of those I
mentioned above has said to me, “When I fail you, Jen, not if
I fail you, I want you to hold me accountable.”
But their willingness to do
what is right is a ray of hope in the midst of all our disappointment in
our national and state political class. Support them in any way you
can; when they win, hold them accountable. You never know, they just
might have the makings of our next hero.
