A black Man's Perspective

Some of you may have read this already, but in light of my post yesterday I thought I would post this. I received this email, ironically today. Huntley Brown is an African American musician. His letter is so well-written and explains also why I cannot vote for Mr.Obama (although, I would have added a few other reasons as well). I especially like how he says whomever is elected will get his prayer support.

Why I Can't Vote For Obama

By Huntley Brown


Dear Friends,
A few months ago I was asked for my perspective on Obama, I sent
out an e-mail with a few points. With the election just around the
corner I decided to complete my perspective. Those of you on my e-list
have seen some of this before but its worth repeating.
First I must say who ever wins the election will have my prayer
support. Obama needs to be commended for his accomplishments but I need
to explain why I will not be voting for him. Many of my friends process
their identity through their blackness.
I process my identity through Christ. Being a Christian (a
Christ follower) means he leads I follow. I can't dictate the terms he
does because he is the leader.
I can't vote black because I am black I have to vote Christian
because that's who I am. Christian first black second. Neither should
anyone from the other ethnic groups vote because of ethnicity. 200 years
from now I won't be asked if I was black or white. I will be asked if I
know Jesus and accepted him as Lord and savior.
In an election there are many issues to consider but when a
society gets abortion, same-sex marriage, embryonic stem-cell research,
human cloning to name a few wrong economic concerns will soon not
matter.
We need to follow Martin Luther King's words don't judge someone
by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. I
don't know Obama so all I can go off is his voting record.
His voting record earned him the title of the most liberal
senator in the US Senate in 2007.
NATIONAL JOURNAL: Obama: Most Liberal Senator in 2007
(01/31/2008)
To beat Ted Kennedy and Hilary Clinton as the most liberal
senator, takes some doing.
Obama accomplished this feat in 2 short years. I wonder what
would happen to America if he had four years to work with.
There is a reason Planned Parenthood gives him a 100 % ratings.
There is a reason the homosexual community supports him.
There is a reason Ahmadinejad, Chavez, Castro, Hamas etc loves
him.
There is a reason he said he would nominate liberal judges to
the Supreme Court.
There is a reason he voted against the infanticide bill.
There is a reason he voted No on the constitutional ban of
same-sex marriage.
There is a reason he voted no on partial birth abortion.
There is a reason he voted no on confirming Justices Roberts and
Alito. These two judges are conservatives and they have since overturned
partial birth abortion. The same practice Obama wanted to continue.
Let's take a look at t he practice he wanted to continue.
The 5 Step Partial Birth Abortion procedure:
A. Guided by ultrasound, the abortionist grabs the baby's leg
with forceps.
(Remember this is a live baby)
B. The baby's leg is pulled out into the birth canal.
C. The abortionist delivers the baby's entire body, except for
the head.
D. The abortionist jams scissors into the baby's skull. The
scissors are then opened to enlarge the hole.
E. The scissors are removed and a suction catheter is inserted.
The child's brains are sucked out, causing the skull to collapse. The
dead baby is then removed.
God help him.
There is a reason Obama opposed the parent notification law.
Think about this you can't give a kid an aspirin without
parental notification but that same kid can have an abortion without
parental notification. This is insane.
There is a reason he went to Jeremiah Wright's church for 20
years.
Obama tells us he has good judgment but he sat under Jeremiah
Wright teaching for 20 years. Now he is condemning Wrights sermons. I
wonder why now?
Obama said Jeremiah Wright led him to the Lord and discipled
him. A disciple is one in training. Jesus told us in Matthew 28 v 19 -
20: 'Go and make disciples of all nations'. This means reproduce your
self. Teach people to think like you, walk like you, talk like you
believe what you believe etc. The question I have is what did Jeremiah
Wright teach him?
Would you support a White President who went to a church which
has tenants that said they have a
1. Commitment to the White Community
2. Commitment to the White Family
3. Adherence to the White Work Ethic
4. Pledge to make the fruits of all developing and acquired
skills available to the White Community .
5. Pledge to Allocate Regularly, a Portion of Personal Resources
for Strengthening and Supporting White Institutions
6. Pledge allegiance to all White leadership who espouse and
embrace the White Value System
7. Personal commitment to embracement of the White Value
System.'
Would you support a President who went to a church like that?
Just change the word from white to black and you have the
tenents of Obama's former church. If President Bush was a member of a
church like this, he would be called a racist. Jessie Jackson and Al
Sharpton would have been marching outside.
This kind of church is a racist church. Obama did not wake up
after 20 years and just discovered he went to a racist church. The
church can't be about race. Jesus did not come for any particular race.
He came for the whole world.
A church can't have a value system based on race. The churches
value system has to be based on biblical mandate. It does not matter if
it's a white church or a black church its still wrong. Anyone from
either race that attends a church like this would never get m y vote.
Obama's former Pastor Jeremiah Wright is a disciple of liberal
theologian James Cone, author of the 1970 book A Black Theology of
Liberation. Cone once wrote: 'Black theology refuses to accept a God who
is not identified totally with the goals of the black community. If God
is not for us and against white people, then he is a murderer, and we
had better kill him.
Cone is the man Obama's mentor looks up to. Does Obama believe
this?
So what does all this mean for the nation?
In the past when the Lord brought someone with the beliefs of
Obama to lead a nation it meant one thing judgment.
Read 1 Samuel 8 when Israel asked for a king.
First God says 1 Samuel 1 v 9 Now listen to them; but warn them
solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will
do.'
Then God says
1 Samuel 1 v 18 When that day comes, you will cry out for
relief from the king
you have chosen, and the LORD will not an swer you in that day.'
19 But the people refused to listen to Samuel. 'No!' they said.
'We want a king over us. 20 Then we will be like all the other nations,
with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles.'
21 When Samuel heard all that the people said, he repeated it
before the LORD. 22 The LORD answered, 'Listen to them and give them a
king.'
Here is what we know for sure:
God is not schizophrenic
He would not tell one person to vote for Obama and one to vote
for McCain. As the scripture says a city divided against itself cannot
stand, so obviously many people are not hearing from God.
Maybe I am the one not hearing but I know God does not change
and Obama contradicts many things I read in scripture so I doubt it.
For all my friends who are voting for Obama can you really look
God in the face and say Father based on your word, I am voting for Obama
even though I know he will continue the genoci dal practice of partial
birth abortion.
He might have to nominate three or four Supreme Court justices,
and I am sure he will be nominating liberal judges who will be making
laws that are against you.
I also know he will continue to push for homosexual rights, even
though you destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah for this. I know I can look the
other way because of the economy.

I could not see Jesus agreeing with many of Obama's positions.
Finally I have two questions for all my liberal friends.
Since we know someone's value system has to be placed on the
nation;
1 Whose value system should be placed on the nation?
2 Who should determine that this is the right value system for
the nation?
Blessings,
Huntley Brown

I went to snopes.com to make sure the email was legit. Mr.Brown added to this letter on snopes

Too far

We received a chain email this week that, in my opinion, goes too far. Basically this email is making the claim that the real reason that people are voting for McCain is that Obama is black. That we are overlooking all his negative traits simply because he is white. It is titled "If the tables were turned" and makes some statements about McCain, but put in a way that if Obama was the one who ____. (all negative statements, by the way) This is one of the final statements

If these questions reflected a reality, if the tables were turned, do you really believe the election numbers would be as close as they are? This is what racism does. It covers up, rationalizes and minimizes qualities in one candidate and emphasizes negative characteristics in another when there is a color difference.

First of all, this is politics we are talking about. It doesn't matter the color of the person, ALL parties emphasize negative characteristics in the opposing party and downplay negative characteristics in their own party(which, by the way, we ALL have some negative characteristics). Sure, there probably are people who are voting for McCain because he is white. But, then again, you could say there are some who are voting for Obama simply because he has some African American blood. It could go both ways.

Secondly, this notion of racisim in this election is what could split this country up. If you go to Todd's blogs you will see how he and I have thought and wrestled with coming to an understanding on how Christians can vote for Obama because of certain fundamental family and biblical differences between he and McCain. Neither candidate is perfect, but we really feel that McCain and the Republican party more closely align themselves with our beliefs. (again, realizing that neither party is perfect in God's eyes) We have listened to the rationale of people who disagree with us. But, to claim that ultimately it comes down to color is very offensive to me and to many other McCain supporters I'm sure. For those believers out there who are voting for Obama, PLEASE stop this talk. It is not helpful to our community or our nation.

Whomever is the elected President next week, they are appointed by God. We need to respect that God has a reason for his election. If it happens to be McCain then I pray that people stop and think before they react. With chain letters like I mentioned, I worry about rioting and much worse. Again, if you are an Obama supporter and you are a Christian, please do not encourage the racism line of politics.

Chocolate

Abby and I are chocolate lovers. My sister took this picture Saturday at a store. It kinda sums things up for us:

Last Visit to the Beach for Awhile

We have a tradition that we started, oh, probably 8 or 9 years ago with our friends Keith and Kristi. Usually once in mid-spring and then again in mid-fall we take a walk at a local Park. This hike leads through a wooded area and opens up into the beach. Usually when we go there are not many people around as it is off-season. Today, however, the place was packed. We were able to spend a gorgeous afternoon enjoying God's wonderful creation!







Even the dog's enjoyed themselves!

A Few Moments of Quiet

And we find this...







Josh and Abby sure had fun with their friends Caleb, Ethan and Andrew today!! I'm afraid that next summer we will have a field of cow corn where the trampoline currently is!

Fear and Uncertainty

I have said before, I am not a very political person, but this year I have had quite a bit of passion for what is going on in our government and decisions that need to be made. I know that is probably true for many people during an election year. Anyway, along with this passion I have been led to fear. "What if the wrong person is put into office?" "What will happen to this country?" and, with the economy right now and the decisions needing to be made I wonder "how is this going to affect my children?"

So, I decided to fast every Wednesday until election day. I have only fasted one other time in my life and that was when my friend Leanna's husband was critically injured. I am sharing this with you with hesitation. I don't want to sound like the person "praying out loud on the street corner". I share it with you because I have had wonderful "God moments" when I have fasted.

Instead of dinner last night I went to an old sermon outline from July when we had Dan Seaborn preach at our church. The topic was "The State of the Nation" One of the very first things he says is that "We as a nation have made the decision to be a Nation under God". We say this each time we say the Pledge of Allegiance. His sermon was not telling us who to vote for, instead he was encouraging us to continue to choose Godly leaders. All throughout the Bible there are examples of what happened to nations that chose a leader who did not follow God's ways and examples. As long as we continue to call on God to look on our nation we will be blessed.

As Ronald Reagan once said "America was founded by people who believe(d) that God was their rock of safety. I recognize we must be cautious in claiming that God is on our side, but I think its alright to keep asking if we're on His side."

I realize that there needs to be seperation of church and state. But, that doesn't mean that we shouldn't continue to look for Godly morals in our leaders. Sit down and really think what may happen if we elect a leader who does not have these morals. Again, this thought brings fear to my mind.

Now comes the good part. With that fear and overwhelming sense of urgency and fasting I was led to a chapter in the Bible that I wrote down wrong on my sermon outline! I wrote Isaiah 32:22 and there is no verse like that! But, catch this, God wanted me to read Isaiah 32!!! It just gives me chills. Follow along what the Lord is sharing:
"Behold, a king will reign righteously, And princes will rule justly. And each will be like a refuge from the wind, And a shelter from the storm, Like streams of water in a dry country, Like the shade of a huge rock in a prached land. Then the eyes of those who see will not be blinded, And the ears of those who hear will listen. And the mind of the hasty will discern the truth, And the tongue of the stammerers will hasten to speak clearly. No longer will the fool be called noble, Or the rogue be spoken of as generous...But the noble man devises noble plans; And by noble plans he stands...Then my people will live in a peaceful habitation, And in secure dwellings and in undisturbed resting places;" Isaiah 32:1-5, 8, 18
The footnote from verse one led me to Jeremiah 23:5 "Behold, the days are coming, "declares the Lord, "When I shall raise up for David a righteous Branch; And He will reign as king and act wisely and do justice and righteusness in the land." referring to Christ as the King.

I do not need to be fearful when Christ is my King. Yes, we need to make good decisions when voting and need to encourage and pray for our congresspeople to make Godly decisions. But, ultimately, Christ will Reign!! This is only a passing place for those who are Christians. If you belive in Jesus Christ your true home is in Heaven! He is the One who will NEVER break any promises. My Deliverer is coming!