Rick Perry & His faith in Jesus Christ
Republican presidential candidate Rick Perry addressed a crowd at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia on Wednesday. In his address, he downplayed his mediocre college performance, but emphasized his faith in God for direction in his life.
Rather than report on the heart of Perry’s message, the Democratically biased liberal press did their best to smear Perry with headlines such as ‘Perry casts himself as anti-intellectual, says his life shaped by faith.’ The first paragraph immediately wants everyone to think that Perry has little knowledge and failed some of his classes in college and like all other anti-intellectuals relied on faith in God.
Most candidates would down play such an academic performance or even try to hide it like they do their birth certificate. However, by Perry’s candor, honesty and openness, it demonstrates character qualities that have not been seen in a president or presidential candidate in quite some time.
Surprisingly, they did report some of what Perry told the audience, but did so in a way as if trying to mock his religious views instead of congratulating him for having them. Some of what Perry shared was:
“He who knows the number of drops in the ocean, he counts the sands in the desert, he knows you by name…He doesn’t require perfect people to execute his perfect plan…As spiritual beings, we are meant to live in relationship with our creator and with one another. And the happiest moments of every experience are when I am in communion with God and in community with others…God uses broken people to reach a broken world. The mistakes of yesterday say nothing about the possibilities of tomorrow.”
To date, I’ve not heard any other candidate, especially Obama; tell so much about their life and their faith. Perry has repeatedly stood unashamedly in front of audiences and the media declaring his faith in God and Jesus Christ and what it has meant to him.
Other candidates claiming to be Christians have done so with much less vigor almost as if they were not sure they wanted to make it public. Some only mention it in passing as if they are ashamed or embarrassed to admit it. It reminds me of what Christ said in Matthew 8:34-38:
“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? For what can a man give in return for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”
