November 15-16, 2019

“The Power of the Office”

Marie Yovanovitch’s riveting testimony was interrupted one hour into the proceedings by a Presidential tweet in which the President questioned the career diplomat’s competence, noted the President of Ukraine did not like her and pointed out his power to fire diplomats at will.  Defending his attempt to intimidate and smear the credibility of her witness before Congress, the President defended his remarks saying, “I have freedom of speech like everyone else.”

This last statement shows this President has very little, if any, understanding of his role as President of the United States, comparing statements from him and his office as being like anyone else who speaks out on an issue.  The most powerful man in the world is given deference by all due to the position of his office and respect due to his position.  Yet, he uses the position and power of his office to smear the credibility of career diplomats who have dedicated their lives to the defense and promotion of the power and influence of United States government and all its citizens throughout the world.  These type of smear tactics appear to be the President’s standard playbook on how to use Presidential power as this is not the first case where this President has lashed out at someone who opposes his actions.

President Trump now stands accused of using the power and position of his office to promote his own personal agenda in attempting to use back channels to the normal diplomatic process to achieve his own personal goal of obtaining a statement from the Ukrainian President and government that an ongoing investigation into Joe Biden and his son was ongoing in Ukraine.  Apparently, President Trump planned to use this statement in his 2020 presidential campaign as a means to attack and thwart Joe Biden’s bid for the Presidency, as he appears to be the one person who perhaps might defeat him.

This moment in our democracy is a good opportunity for this country and all its citizens to see what kind of mettle we are made of.  It is an opportunity for us all to decide if we will continue to tolerate corruption, greed and political deviance from the constitution in our President and in our government.  If we cannot deal with this crisis of democracy in a way that cleanses these abuses of power from our Presidency and all branches of the federal government, our democracy will be forever weakened.  We will forever be a lesser nation, governed by the whims of rich and powerful politician’s intent on their own way and no longer governed by the collective will of the people!

This crisis of democracy is of our own doing as we are all responsible for allowing this sham government to continue.  We ought to be recalling from office those who support this President and his abuse of the Presidential office.  We ought to be protesting in the street in an attempt to save our democracy.  Instead we see the President receiving a standing ovation at an Alabama football game!  If this is the type of President we truly want, may God have mercy on us all!

It is my sincere hope that these hearings on impeachment of this President will at least be an exercise in democracy and oversight of a wayward President as the constitution allows.  He may never be convicted of misuse of the power of his office.  He may continue to use the power of his office to pardon criminals and smear honest, upright citizens only trying to serve our nation.  He may pardon war criminals and allow his son to denigrate the real heroes lying now in Arlington Cemetery.  Yet, those among us who still have a conscience and are able with God’s help to discern good from evil, let us stand against this abuse of Presidential power.  Let us stand for what is just, what is right, what is true.   Even if the whole world endorses the power of evil, let us as Christians stand for what is good.  If we cannot, we have also lost our own souls, not knowing any longer the difference between good and evil.  In the beginning, this led to Adam and Eve’s expulsion from the Garden of Eden.   In like manner, if we cannot discern what is good and what is evil in this crisis of democracy, we will find ourselves expelled from the good garden of democracy given by our Founding Fathers.   This is our decision as we stand in front of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.  We failed miserably on that first occasion.  Only time will tell what we decide to do now.   May the Lord God help us to choose rightly!  May the Lord God through his Holy Spirit in Jesus Christ God’s Son help us all!

Prayer:  Heavenly Father, ruler of all the Universe and our Lord and Savior:  Today in our nation we face a crisis unlike any we have seen before.  In the first crisis, our President Nixon has the good sense to resign from office in order to save the office of the Presidency and for our nation’s good.  In this crisis of democracy, we witness a President brutally attacking and seeking to destroy those who serve his office and our nation.  We have set up boards of testimonials in order to judge this behavior and so the truth may be known to all the citizens of this nation.  Yet, we do not know how to resolve this crisis, as this President is without conscience and always places his own interests above the interests of his citizens.  He spouts many words in order to deflect our gaze from looking at him, at his crimes, at his own abuse of power.  He attempts to blame others for behaviors which are his alone and his cronies of power.  We do not know how to effectively pray for this President.  And so today, we pray for ourselves:

Heavenly Father, help us to do what is right; help us to do what is good.  Help us to live humbly before You, our God.  Even if all our leadership fails us, we know that You, O Lord our Savior, will not fail us.  In You, O Lord, we place our entire hope, trust and future.  We pray not only for ourselves but also for our children and our grandchildren.  We know we will soon pass from this life into eternity.  But our children and our grandchildren will inherit what we have left for them.  Lord, let our nation be a place which respects the rule of law, which is governed with true democracy by the will of all the people.  Teach us how to accept and even love others not like ourselves.  Teach us to become a welcoming democracy, one not held in the grasp of greed and political power, but a democracy “of the people, by the people and for the people.”

In the days yet before us, as we find ourselves making difficult choices, once more finding ourselves standing before the tree of knowledge of good and evil in your holy garden:  in these days help us to choose rightly.  Help us to discern good from evil and truth from lies.  We rely and we trust upon you, as without your grace we will surely fall.  In the name of Jesus Christ, the Holy Son of the One Living God, through the blessings and power of the Holy Spirit of God the Father and God the Son, we make our prayer this day in your Holy and Blessed Name, to whom be all praise, honor, glory and blessing, both now and forevermore.  Amen.

Bill Wilson, servant of God by God’s grace and mercies.