D.C. and Back

Last week, May 7-9, myself and Scott, a young minister in our church, traveled to Washington D.C. to attend a Pastor's Briefing sponsored by the Family Research Council, a Christian, pro-family organization. It was an awesome time. We stayed at the Hyatt Regency about two blocks from the Capitol, where the conference was being held. We heard some wonderful messages about the importance of standing for Christian values in the public and political arena. The highlight for me was the Wednesday night tour of the Capitol building where we heard Rick Greene and David Barton of Wallbuilders ministry, talk about the religious heritage of our nation. It was amazing to hear how pastors had a great impact in preparing the nation for the impending fight for freedom and intricately involved the formation of our founding documents.

On Thursday we prayer walked around Capitol Hill and the Mall. We also spent some time in the Library of Congress, which is an amazing building. We also walked to the World War II Memorial, which wasn't there the last time I was in DC in 1997. It was a bit of a walk from the Capitol Hill area, but well worth it. I've always been interested in WWII, and being at the monument and reading the quotes from the leaders of that era was a very moving experience. I'm looking forward to going back and taking the family.

I read a Proverb a day (31 chapters in Proverbs and 30 or 31 days in a month), and I came across 14:34, "Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people." We became a great nation because of our commitment to biblical values and principles. We are losing our greatness because we are losing our commitment to those same things. But I believe we're seeing the beginnings of a grassroots return to our biblical foundations. Organizations like Family Research Council are providing the leadership and the resources to turn our nation around. Pray for them as they are on the front line of culture war. And pray for all Christians to get involved in the voting process and vote our values. I pray that our generation is used of God to bring about a national spiritual renewal.