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EternaLee
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how the church can sway this election
« Thread Started on Jan 9, 2006, 12:32pm »

How the Church can sway this election

If the Church is to influence the January election, she must focus her influence. As with literal wars, political battles are also won and lost in key battlegrounds. The recent U.S. Presidential election saw enormous efforts aimed at key states which could swing in either direction. The Church must do the same in Canada, while continuing to pray and participate in other ridings across the country.

While Liberals have called Conservatives scary, the opposite is truer. After pledging in 1999 to do everything necessary to preserve the traditional definition of marriage, the Liberal government voted to include same-sex couples. It also threatened religious freedom by adding sexual orientation to hate crimes legislation. Decriminalized pot, legalized prostitution, legalized euthanasia, government seizure of legal handguns, and government-run childcare are all on the way should the Liberals be reinstated. Liberal rule has become such a guarantee that connections between business and government have grown corrupt, Ad Scam being the most public manifestation of this.

Pro-family Liberals like Pat O'Brian felt they could no longer stay in the Liberals. Judy Wasylycia-Leis, a Christian NDPer who bucked her party's official same-sex marriage stance, lost the nomination for her riding and won't run in this year's election.
The Conservative party remains the most viable vehicle for needed change in this country, and, fortunately, carries the most Christian and family-friendly stances of any of the main parties. Stephen Harper is also an evangelical with an MBA and experience leading the National Citizens' Coalition. It seems best that all Christians who can do so in good conscience should support the Conservatives in activism, letters to the editor, making their voice heard at public forums, and through prayer.

But those who can't accept this should get involved where they see fit. Should Christians be running in other parties, let them receive the support of fellow believers by all means. This said, the suggestions that follow on leverage are applied with Christian party members, and especially Conservatives in mind.
This will lose some observers right away, and let them take it for what it is. What follows in this letter will still be of merit even for those who disagree with this point. I do not believe God is a Conservative, and I believe he exercises influence on all parties, and is ultimately sovereign over all. This will remain true even if Conservatives lose this election.

I am told Cindy Jacobs prayed for our Parliament buildings awhile back and had a vision of Parliamentarians raising their hands to God. She said a revival in Canada would bring so many into the Kingdom that they would naturally elect Christians. There is hope for Canada's future. Even prophets like Rick Joyner have seen that Canada has a bright future following the present devastating storm (http://www.morningstarministries.org/feature/sw/canada/canada070903.htm), and that a new political and spiritual leadership will arise in the land. We need to pray for God to raise up such leaders.

Cindy Jacobs also had a stern warning for us in Regina. She said that pastors were going to be thrown in jail if Christians didn't get involved in politics to turn the situation around. The trumpet has been blown, and we must respond. Observers like Lorne Guenther and Colby Cosh have also noted that the Christian right in Canada needs a political activist similar to Ralph Reed in the States. Let us pray for one to be raised up in this country.

We can only do so much between now and January 23, and again, most of it must be leveraged well. As I write this, the elections prediction site http://www.electionprediction.org/2005_fed/ reads as follows:
Current Prediction: 5:50 PM 26/12/2005
Liberal Party 85
Conservatives 73
N.D.P. 14
Bloc Québécois 51
Other 0
Too Close 85
Total 308

If 85 seats are too close to call, this should tell us that this nation is in the valley of decision right now and is certainly up for grabs. "Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision" (Joel 3:14). Prayer ministries for this election should be praying for God's candidates to be elected in these ridings. Let those with discernment seek as to who these should be. (My default answers? The Conservative Candidate and/or the Christian candidate) Clicks on the provinces of the website above will reveal which specific ridings are up for grabs.

If one accepts advocating for the Conservatives, then the Conservatives must gain in Ontario first, BC second, and the Maritimes third. Conservatives gained 22 of 36 seats in BC in 2004, but could even lose there now. Ontario's southern, but more rural ridings are more easily within Conservative reach, but other more urban areas are also attainable. As always, we need to pray for Toronto, the city which leads English Canada in business, media, finance, education, and exerts a political influence inferior only to Quebec City and Ottawa.

Stephen Harper's past comment that a defeatist attitude hinders the Maritimes is likely true. However, it has left a poor taste in Maritime voters. When Christians pray to pull down thoughts, pretensions, and ideas that defeat Christ's purposes (2 Corinthians 10:4-5), this idea is one of them. Pray that Harper's comment won't cost him, but also that the attitude itself will leave the Maritimes, that it may prosper.
We must also pray that Svend Robinson would not succeed in regaining his seat in Vancouver Centre. Robinson has spearheaded gay rights and euthanasia for years and even asked the House of Commons to remove the acknowledgement of God's sovereignty from the Canadian Constitution. Concerted prayer helped lead to Robinson's downfall and it must continue to ensure he has no electoral resurrection. Let us also pray for his salvation and well-being.

"The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong, nor does food come to the wise or wealth to the brilliant or favor to the learned; but time and chance happen to them all" (Ecclesiastes 9:11). We need to pray that good strategy will be given to Christians and Conservatives and that they will actually be executed well. Spirits of confusion can do great harm.
The media, as always, need our prayers, that they will cover issues fairly. Two years ago I talked to Peter Mansbridge at an event at the University of Regina. I told him our prayer group was meeting the next day and asked what we could pray for him. He paused a moment, then responded, "Pray that we will cover the news and people fairly." I believe this his honest desire, and media in general still has this goal. What it does not realize as clearly are its own biases. Nor do our universities in Canada do a good job of forming well-informed and balanced minds. Academic narrow-mindedness is of a different variety and ideology, but is as true of left-wing Canadians as any of the right-wingers they accuse. In any case, we need to pray for positive coverage of biblically based stances on issues, and for Christians to likewise be raised up in the realm of media.

Nevertheless, an antichrist spirit is strong in both our media and academic institutions, and also needs to be pulled down. Christians are increasingly marginalized in our public discourse as intolerant or even irrelevant. The role of religious influence in public life gets some of the worst disdain. This too must be pulled down.

The threat to national unity is real, and while I don't believe it will prevail, we must also pray for godly leaders in Quebec. I believe God has a specific plan to save members of the BQ and PQ and to change the chemistry and bent of the party. May we continue to do our part to preserve Canada and her institutions, including that of the governor general and the monarchy.

A year before the 2000 election, Bob Jones prophesied that God wanted George W. Bush to become the United States president http://www.bobjones.org/articles/the%20upcoming%20presidential%20elections.htm and urged that the Church pray for his election. He even went to Florida and asked leaders of certain black churches to seek God on who He wanted to be president. They sought God in prayer and concluded independently that He wanted Bush. Many in their congregations voted accordingly. We know how close Florida was, and despite the controversy around the Florida votes, it seems those few hundred votes really swayed the entire nation.

This is a reminder to us that God is interested in the affairs of the nations and that the Church must do its part to help God's kingdom to come and His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. We cannot afford to be passive. It is time for action.
The Church must also decide to be salt and light not just in the religious realm, but in every realm--entertainment, media, business, arts, education, health, and family. And, we cannot afford to exert political influence in election time only. We must be unashamedly activist and be willing to fight for incremental gains in politics and causes, just as homosexuals have. A ban on abortions after 24 weeks and in the cases of rape and incest would have the support of most Canadians and would be a devastating symbolic blow to abortion advocates nationwide. Let's fight for it!

Charles Finney said, "A revival is no more a miracle than a crop of wheat. Revival can be secured in any area where willing souls enter into the battle ready to win or die, or if necessary to win and die! 'The kingdom of heaven suffereth violence and the violent take it by force.'" Let's be ready and willing to enter this fight, to use our leverage, and to make a difference for Christ in our nation. May God keep our land glorious and free.

« Last Edit: Jan 9, 2006, 12:36pm by EternaLee »

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EternaLee

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