"The battle is now joined on many fronts. 
We will not wavier, we will not tire, we will not falter 
and we will not fail.  Peace and freedom will prevail."
President George W. Bush

This was the same man who came within a hair's breath of 
losing an election in November, who withstood the political 
chicanery of the Florida Democratic machine to fix the vote count.

This was the same man who admitted to having a drinking problem
in younger years, and whose happy-go-lucky lifestyle led him to mediocre
grades in college and an ill-fated oil venture.

This was the same man who mangled syntax even more than his father,
and whose speaking missteps became known as "Bushisms."

And on Friday, this was the man who bore the weight of the world
and the responsibilities of a generation with dignity, class, confidence, 
appropriate solemnity, and even much-needed wit.

One thing struck me during the campaign, that difficult, roller-coaster
campaign that now seems years ago. It was that George W. Bush never
seemed to get ruffled. Whether the theft of a campaign debate video or the 
sudden (some would say, vicious) release of a DUI arrest two decades ago 
at a key moment, "W" did not lose his cool. At times, his staff seemed
overconfident, as did many of us. A 350-electoral-vote win, they quietly
implied  . . . and we optimistically believed.  Then they counted the votes, 
miscounted others, and re-counted still others.  At the end, he was still 
there. Whereas Al Gore almost frantically huffed and puffed, trying to gin
up something out of nothing,  Bush quietly but confidently waited at his
ranch.  He didn't do nothing: that is the mistake people have constantly 
made with this man, confusing lack of  bluster for absence of action. No, 
his team of attorneys and the iron-willed James Baker were carrying out 
his orders, but W stayed in the background, confident and faithful.

You see, it is this faith business that confounded everyone. We have had such 
actors and liars in public office that we have looked skeptically whenever anyone
used the term faith.  But this was the same man who was the first politician ever
in recent memory to name Jesus Christ as the lord of his life on public TV. Not
an oblique reference to being "born-again" or having a "life change." He said the
un-PC-like phrase, "Jesus Christ," to which his handlers and advisors, no doubt,
off stage, were also saying, "Jesus Christ" in a much different tone.

God has a way of honoring those who honor Him. David learned that while
he was on the run from Saul's armies. Job learned that after his time of horrible
tribulation. The Messiah said so Himself,  many times.

So this was the man who actually put faith into practice. He actually loves those
who hate him. It is a staggering concept, so foreign in daily occurence that few
thought it anything but grandstanding. Even one of W's biggest supporters 
chided the President for adhering to his "new tone." Yet there he was, again and
again, thanking the Democrats. Appointing his enemies to high places in his 
government. Inviting his former foes and their wives to private movie screenings,
and (I know, this is hard to stomach) even treating them with dignity. See, this
was the man who learned early on how  faith worked: by praying for his enemies,
you "heap burning coals upon their heads."

This was the man who named the absolute top people in national security 
and defense, then caught barbs from the politically righteous that this one 
didn't have the right views on abortion or that one didn't have the right
 position on guns.

And on September 11, at mid-morning, this was the man thrust into a 
position only known by Roosevelt, Churchill, Lincoln, and Washington. The
weight of the world was on his shoulders, and the responsibility of a generation
was on his soul.  So this same man---the one that the media repeatedly 
attempted to tarnish with charges of "illegitimacy," and the one whose 
political opponents desperately sought to stonewall until mid-term elections
walked to his seat at the front of the National Cathedral just three days after 
the two most impressive symbols of American capitalism and prosperity 
virtually evaporated, along with, perhaps, thousands of Americans.

As he sat down next to his wife,  immediately I knew that even if his faith
ever faltered, hers didn't. I have never seen a more peaceful face than Laura
Bush, whose eyes seemed as though they were already gazing at the final 
outcome . . . not just of this conflict, but of her reward in Heaven itself.
In this marriage, you indeed got two for the price of one.

Then came the defining moment of our generation. Some people fondly 
recall their Woodstock days. Others mark with grim sadness November 22, 1963,
as the day America lost her innocence. But I firmly believe when the history of 
this time is written, it will be acknowledged by friend and foe alike that 
President George W. Bush came of age in that cathedral and lifted a nation off
its knees.  It wasn't so much his words, though read a decade later, they will 
indeed be as stirring as any. This conflict would end, he noted, ". . . at a time 
of our choosing."  It certainly wasn't his emotion. What had to have been one
of the most stunning exhibitions of self-control in presidential history,
W was able to deliver his remarks without losing either his resolve or his 
focus, or, more important, his confidence. It was as if God's hand, which
had guided him through that sliver-thin election, now rested fully on him.

His quiet confidence let our enemies know . . . and believe me, they know. . . 
that they made a grave miscalculation. Now, this same man who practiced 
his faith through a tough election, who steeled his convictions even more 
in a drawn-out Florida battle, and who never once gave in to the temptation
to get in the gutter with his foes (well, ok, maybe the "Clymer" comment is an 
exception), this same man now lifted the weight of the world and the 
responsibility of a generation and put it on his modest shoulders as 
though it were another unpleasant duty.

As he walked back to his seat, the camera angle was appropriate. He was 
virtually alone in the scene, alone in that massive place of God, just him 
and the Lord. But that's the way it's always been in his life recently.  In that
brief time it took him to return to his seat, I believe he heard words to the 
effect of, "You can do this, George. I am with you always. And you can do
 this well, because I am going before you. And don't worry about the
weight. I've got it." And I saw in his eyes a quiet acknowledgement. 
"I know. Thank you,  Lord."

Back at his seat, when W sat down,  George H. W. Bush reached over and
took his son's  hand. The elder Bush always struck me as a religious man, 
but not someone who shared his life on a daily basis with the Lord. 
George H. W. treats the Father like a respected uncle, visiting Him on 
appropriate holidays and knowing the relationship is real, but not constant. 
Anyway, I believe that in that fatherly squeeze George H. W. said, "I wish I 
could do this for you, son, but I can't. You have to do this on your own." 
W squeezed back and gave him that look of peace that Laura had kept 
throughout. It said, "I don't have to do it alone, dad. I've got help."

*******************

What a blessing to have a professing Christian as President - one who is not 
ashamed to admit it!  Please take a moment after you read this to pray for him
he truly does have the weight of the world on his shoulders. Pray that God will
sustain him and give him wisdom and discernment in his decisions. Make no 
mistake about it - the decisions he makes in the coming days, weeks and months
will literally define the future of our country and the  free world. Pray for his 
protection and that of his family.

After you have prayed, send this to everyone on your e-mail list. 
Our President needs Christians around the world to be praying for him. 
As this makes the e-mail rounds, eventually there could literally be
people praying for him 24/7!!  He needs it.

Author: Unknown

Heal The World

There's a place in your heart
And I know that it is love
And this place could be much 
brighter than tomorrow
And if you really try
You'll find there's no need to cry
In this place you'll feel there's
no hurt or sorrow

There are ways to get there
If you care enough for the living
Make a little space
Make a better place...

Heal the world
Make it a better place
For you and for me
and the entire human race
There are people dying
If you care enough for the living
Make a better place 
for you and for me

If you want to know why
There's a love that cannot lie
Love is strong
It only cares of joyful giving
If we try
We shall see
In this bliss
We cannot feel fear or dread
We stop existing and start living

Then it feels that always
Love's enough for us growing
So make a better world
Make a better world...

Heal the world
Make it a better place
For you and for me
and the entire human race
There are people dying
If you care enough for the living
Make a better place 
for you and for me

And the dream we were conceived in
Will reveal a joyful face
And the world we once believed in
Will shine again in grace
Then why do we keep strangling life
Wound this earth
Crucify its soul
Though it's plain to see
This world is heavenly
be God's glow

We could fly so high
Let our spirits never die
In my heart I feel you are all my brothers
Create a world with no fear
Together we cry happy tears
See the nations turn their 
swords into plowshares

We could really get there
If you cared enough for the living
Make a little space
To make a better place...

Heal the world
Make it a better place
For you and for me
and the entire human race
There are people dying
If you care enough for the living
Make a better place
for you and for me 

Heal the world
Make it a better place
For you and for me
and the entire human race
There are people dying
If you care enough for the living
Make a better place 
for you and for me

Heal the world
Make it a better place
For you and for me
and the entire human race
There are people dying
If you care enough for the living
Make a better place
for you and for me

There are people dying
If you care enough for the living
Make a better place for you and for me

There are people dying
If you care enough for the living
Make a better place for you and for me

You and for me
You and for me
You and for me...

By: Michael Jackson

.Midi playing is 
"Heal The World"

My sincerest thanks go out to Misty
for sending me this Prayer Chain in e-mail
and inspiring me to make this page!
{{{{{MISTY}}}}}

Other Pages On This Site...