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 52^nd 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.