And What Have You Done for Me Lately?

And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin.
Jesus saith unto them, "Loose him, and let him go."
John 11:44

At the risk of overspiritualizing this, think about it with me for a moment. Isn't this what Christ has done for all of us? He brought us from death unto life. But not only did He do that, He didn't leave us wrapped up and bound in our old sins and ways. He freed us from them, and they have no power over us anymore unless we let them.
He loosed us, and let us go.
We are bound no more, so we are free to run to Him.

Right Now

I tried to watch some of the vice-presidential debates tonight. I kid you not, I had it on for maybe three minutes before I became too disgusted to watch any more. Just two more politicians babbling on about how great they are or how much they hate the current administration. No hard plans, to solutions to problems, just vague and empty promises. Where have all the statesmen gone? What happened to people who really want to serve their country and not themselves? Do you know what the average salary for a congressman is these days? Somewhere in the neighborhood of $169,000 a year. The Speaker for the House makes $217,000 a year. I know elections campaigns are expensive, but those are still some pretty big incentives. And, congress has the power to vote to increase their own salary. Wouldn't you try pretty hard to get a job that came with power, a great salary, and the potential to make as much money as you and your buddies want? Who cares if you make a difference or not? Just keep your head down and you're set for the next few years.
I've heard a lot of people say that it is impossible to be a part of this machine and not be corrupted by it. But where are the men like Daniel? He moved in the very highest circles of Babylonian power, stood in the presence of the king himself and held great influence in that land, but never once did he compromise his principles. He never wavered in his faith and devotion to what he knew to be right. Where are the men like that today? Are we all just afraid to stand up for anything? Afraid of our own strength? Afraid of persecution? Fear, fear, fear. I've had enough of it. It has paralyzed good men for far too long, and while we have sat idle, others have been busy and look at the mess we find ourselves in. But what difference could one man make? That's just the kind of attitude we need to get rid of! Look at Daniel again: one man, but in the right place at the right time changed the course of an empire! We don't know what influence we might have. But I will tell you this: if all we do is sit chained by fear, we will never know.


By the way, our government spends $271 billion a year on welfare.