Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor:
This is an election year and it is up to us as citizens to elect those who will represent us in our local, state and federal governments. George Washington described this process as follows, “The power under the Constitution will always be in the people. It is entrusted for certain defined purposes, and for a certain limited period to representatives of their own choosing; and whenever it is exercised contrary to their interest or not agreeably to their wishes, their servants can, and undoubtedly will be recalled.”  
By recalled, he is referring to the process of electing someone else in their place. 
Our Founding Fathers realized that our freedoms come from God, it doesn’t come from man. We appeal to a higher power, to the God who created the heavens and the earth. And since the source of our rights come from God and are given directly to the people, we the people give power to the government only as we see fit. It is a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.  We give power to the government only to protect and secure the freedoms that God gave us, so if government didn’t give us our freedoms then government does not have the right to take them away.
In this system of government, the responsibility for good government rests upon the shoulders of its citizens. Our government is a direct reflection of the people it represents. If we expect our government to fear God and reflect qualities of honesty, integrity, equality and justice, then we have to elect representatives who will uphold those values. President James Garfield, our 20th president, in his Centennial Celebration Address in 1876 stated, “Now, more than ever before, the people are responsible for the character of their Congress. If that body be ignorant, reckless, and corrupt, it is because the people tolerate ignorance, recklessness and corruption. If it be intelligent, brave, and pure, it is because the people demand these high qualities to represent them in the national legislature. If the next centennial does not find us a great nation… it will be because those who represent the enterprise, the culture, and the majority of the nation do not aid in controlling the political forces.”
Scripture gives us the formula for selecting good leaders. Exodus 18:21 says, “But select capable men from all the people -- men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain -- and appoint them over thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens.” (NIV) There are four qualities here that all candidates should be judged against; (1) Are they capable of doing the job, (2) do they fear God, (3) have they shown themselves to be trustworthy, and (4) do they hate dishonest gain? 
In this letter I have pointed to a Biblical foundation of government and how to select godly leaders. I would encourage the church, the Bride of Christ, to be involved in shaping our culture and to consider how it may help bring our nation back in line with godly principles.
Greg Epp,
Giltner