Hope We Can Believe In

January 20, 2009

What does the inauguration of Barak Obama as our 44th president mean to you? Are you more optimistic about the future? Are you more hopeful? More than at any other time in my life it seems that the younger generations have been invigorated by a wave of optimism. Despite bleak economic forecasts as well as difficulties both at home and abroad, many who once thought that political involvement was only for other people are finally getting involved and are starting to believe that maybe they too can have a seat at the table. No matter what your political leanings, I think that you will agree that this is good for America. It is good for people to have hope, to believe that they can make a difference.

I believe that people long to live lives of significance, people want to believe that what they say, think, and do matters. I believe that if we as the church want to impact the younger generations we need to take this lesson to heart. We need to learn to listen, James 1:19 implores us to be quick to listen and slow to speak. All too often we as Christians think that we have all the answers, so we forget to listen to the questions. We forget that Jesus values people as much as he values truth. When he encountered the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4, he listened to what she had to say, he didn’t simply start blurting out truth, he responded to her concerns and then gave her a glimpse of hope. If there is anything that we can learn from the inauguration of President Obama today it is that we need to learn to listen to those whom we hope to reach, to make sure that they feel heard and then we can share real hope that they can believe in.