Expectation is being heaped on President-elect Barack Obama. Journalists want him to act as the sitting president before Jan. 20 by urging him to say more than he should now. Devotees believe the heavens will open when he raises his hand to take the oath. But Obama is no redemptive savior, as Dr. Frederick D. Haynes III said in his Sunday sermon this week at Friendship-West Baptist Church in Dallas. Human saviors die and never rise; only Christ died and returned to powerful life.
Expectation should, however, be fixed on Jesus and his church. In my view, Obama's inauguration on Jan. 20 should signal to the world that the church -- not just the new leader in the Oval Office -- is on the front lines to help lead this country through an unprecedented crisis. Obama's ascent to the presidency should be the debut of a radical church in America.
The church serves Someone who puts the "deep" into the phrase, deep pockets. We need -- as Pastor Robert Morris at Gateway Church in Southlake and North Richland Hills, Texas recently said in a televised message -- to invite God into our circumstances. Our eyes may not have seen and our ears may not have heard how a nation can turn around in a day from a financial abyss, but it's certainly within God's power to do it!
In faith, may we consider these eight ideas as Obama takes office next week:
1. Refuse to lay off anyone in your churches and ministries.
This already has happened at several major churches and ministries. And
it's tragic. If anyone should walk in faith and tap resources that
never dwindle, it is the church. The remedy? Revisit the story about
the 19 century minister George Müller
and how he trusted God for money just by praying. In one account, the
breakfast table was prepared at the orphanage he oversaw, but there was
no food. As 300 kids stood at their places at the table, he thanked God
for food that would come in time. After the children sat and got quiet,
a baker and a milkman showed up at the door. According to his bio on
Wikipedia, Müller "never made requests for financial support, nor did
he go into debt." Build your faith and read more accounts about how God answered Müller prayers for finances.
2.Refuse to skip paying your tithes and offerings.
This is a hard one, I know! It's a constant battle, depending on your
faith, discipline, and financial circumstances, to trust whether an
ancient promise is still, well, valid. But as God is showing me, we
must shed the lack mentality. Wherever God leads you to give, give.
Don't hesitate. When God rights our economy and things look up, won't
it feel great to know that your faith was tried and proven true?
3. Go free. Are you a well-known minister? Do folks line up to buy your books, CDs or DVDs? Offer your materials free of charge. Maybe you do this for a specific season or maybe for a set of materials. Whatever you do, I'm suggesting that you test the magnanimity of God! Will he not reward those who gave to his children when they desperately needed strength and vision? If you routinely encourage the saints to ignore the clamor of their own resistance to giving because of the blessing that awaits them, why not freely give yourself? You have no idea who may be won over to God because of your bold and public generosity.
4. Recapture your city. It shouldn't just be Obama who is concerned about the weakened infrastructure of America's cities. Should churches not wonder why urban and rural areas waste away while suburbs are flushed with conveniences? Should not churches fast and pray and build for the welfare of everyone? Should not wealthier congregations partner with sister churches in needier areas? Should not all churches want their communities more physically prosperous with well-paying jobs, affordable housing in attractive and safe neighborhoods, reliable transportation, and sturdy roads and bridges? It is a beautiful and right thing to help millions overseas with wells, medicine and food, but a war of need rages within the borders of the United States. A visionary church works on both fronts.
6. Restore prayer and have some fun with it.
God is our Father and he wants us to come to him with our needs. A
friend and I prayed one late night recently and it was amazing how
energized we became as we petitioned God. As our prayers gained power,
our voices boomed in confidence. Make prayer a personal and a
collective conversation at your church. Schedule a potluck and have
everyone pray. Select areas of the economy and pray about those. Use
tools like Facebook, Plurk or Twitter to motivate people to creatively
pray together.
7. Engage the business leaders in your church. Solicit their ideas and wisdom. Fast and pray with them. Appreciate their knowledge and experience. If they offer radical ideas, don't be rattled by them. Pray about their suggestions and execute the God-sent ones.
8. Ask God to reveal greater personal vision. If you have buried your passion, get the shovel. Unearth what disappointment has entombed. Repent for neglecting your passion. Believe that God intends to complete things in you and in your church that will exceedingly benefit this nation right now. Nothing is too small, too big or too mind-blowing.
As Müller told a little girl named Abigail before he entered the room where 300 hungry orphans stood at a breakfast table with no food:
"Come and see what God will do."
Judy Howard Ellis
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