Elections are highly stressful activities and they can kill you if you have heart problems for many unexpected turn of events. This could be as simple as people bringing their solicitation letters at your gate and asking for money or a true health threat such as the unbearable scorching heat under the sun when campaigning on the road. Others could be as simple as irritations from others who continuously hurl a barrage of accusations against us on the radio or on the TV. Politics may seem to be a little off for us especially if we have witnessed how elections are conducted in Germany. There were no whistle blowing accounts, nor were there banners that occluded the view of the sky. There were no stars who meddled with or into politics, it was simply a bunch of people who were trying to serve an already much improved country.

They still battle against poverty but not anymore in their country as much as their neighbour and the world. Because they have the renewed mind which is the foundation of real progress, they have invested heavily in modernized universities, laboratories and research institutes that continue to churn papers in international publications and products that are hard to compete at or to overcome. True political leadership at this stage of development is simply managing already what they have and investing in others who can do better than their situation. Because Germany was able to use well the funds for Martial Plan and rehabilitated their much devastated country, they are look up today as those who have quickly industrialized.

The Germans knew their roots, that without striving for the best and committing to remove their country from the devastation of war, they can never rise up again. But because they had a leader who resolved to do all he could for the best of the country and to resuscitate the German industial companies, they quickly rose up to become Europe’s economic power house. The same initiative worked for Japan and today both countries invest heavily in manpower development because only the mind that is renewed has the capacity to change the situation that it is in today.

Now that does not mean simple intellectual babbling but to have a renewed mind means to have a genuine passion for the poor to see them uplifted from poverty. Do we know any of the presidentiables who advertise heavily have already removed at least 10 families from a zero income level to one that can be said to be in the middle class? Do we know of anyone of them who had already invested in human capital by holding scholarships for students? Or have involved himself in providing a decent housing for the poor? Or divided lands for them to have some space to till it? Just the mere fact that most of the advertisements that are flung daily in the radio and the TV are untrue, it means much to the character of the one who pays it.

The politics of today has been very different from what has been a decade ago. But some cycles of activities in the Philippines continue to be a feature during elections such as violence and the grip for power. True political leadership has been mostly upheld by great people who have decided to stand for righteousness and truth no matter what. We have an example in the life of Abraham Lincoln. This man not only failed many times in his attempt to get into presidency. I have listed below his attempts for a political office and presidency.

Year Event

1831 He failed in business

1832 He was defeated for the legislature

1833 He failed again in business

1836 He suffered a nervous breakdown

1838 He was defeated for Speakership in the legislature

1840 He was defeated for Elector

1843 He was defeated for Congress

1848 He was defeated again for Congress

1855 He was defeated for Senate

1856 He was defeated for Vice President

1858 He was defeated for the Senate again

1860 He was elected President

He preserved the Union

No quitter

As you can see from the list, Abraham Lincoln was a man who was defeated several times in different and long span of years. It took about 30 more years before he would get elected to the highest office and then preserved the Union; he was not a quitter though he lost several times. His goal, he maintained even in the face of many defeats. A pretender would have quit already after 3 or 4 attempts to get elected in the office. But he persevered in his resolve even after suffering a nervous breakdown. What we can see here, is one of the best characters of a genuine leader, he persevered in spite of all the overwhelming circumstances that he had against him.

Because he believed that everyone were created equal by a God who does not take sides, he did all he could for the Union and the emancipation of the slaves. For this cause he is remembered as the greatest presidents of the United States. Slavery for any other reason that you think could be helpful, will not bear with the Spirit of liberty. God is, for He said, Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty (2 Corinthians 3:17). When this is translated better, we have, “where the Spirit is Lord, there is liberty.” We are confronted today by the burgeoning problem of rebellion, ineptitude and inefficiency in using government money. If we want to be trustworthy servants, we have to use every talent and money that we have in the most profitable way we can do it.

This is why those who are doing well, will also multiply theirs. God cannot trust a person who won’t even learn to use his current resources well. The way forward therefore is to elect a man whom God, the Spirit, can be Lord in his heart and anointed to change the course of our nation. We have been on the path of destruction again as we can see by the deception that our present government has taken into. A deceived person cannot see or know she is deceived that’s why she continues to walk in the lie and under cover of darkness. When a leader works to cover up the evil she has done, more lies are coming and more cover up will need to be done.

The issues of life

The first test of Solomon was the sanctity of life, whether he will value the life of a baby boy or allow it to die. Those who are wise will also resort to do the same. They will abide in life and preserve the sanctity of marriage and the family. It is because England failed to value the life of the Jews that it failed; they did not honor their words to them to give them land in Palestine. They were always vacillating whether to provide a homeland to the Jews or to the Arabs, because they failed the test, their empire was taken and given to their nearest kin.

Nations will be judged by the issues of life and their treatment of the Jews. Likewise those who are truly leaders will invest more on the issues of life such as alleviating poverty, and putting education and health as their first recourse to improve the lives of their constituents.  By equipping their people with the right and needed information, this will arm them to become readily employed in factories, jobs abroad, call centers, or do business themselves. Poverty is not only the lack of money but the inability to choose one’s destiny. One is chained to lack forever, unless he gains the information how to be free.

We are presented every time with the opportunity to save others or make their lives miserable, as a president, every decision you make will not only affect your life but generations later. Because Marcos took the course of destruction, we are still paying for the debts he took and the largesse he gave to his cronies. This ill will does not only speak of him, but every time we vote for a president who does not really know how to rule and where to bring his country, and where to start, we are in for a big and hefty surprise. The road ahead will not only be rocky, but one that needs to be guided by an expert captain. I have been shown a vision that our country’s leadership is on aground because it struck some reefs, for a ship to be aground on reefs is one of the most dangerous situation it can get.

Either he will abandon ship if he cannot guide her ship well, or take the momentum with the tides and the waves to cautiously move away from the rocky reefs. There are some righteous things that we can still be proud of, such as the anti-abortion law that we have and the strong penalty for those getting divorces. These are good deterrents for people who need the law. If we have too much freedom to the point of thinking that it is our right to damage or hurt another person’s property because we are free, this is insanely terrible form of lawlessness. Without law and order, your freedom is false pretence no matter what you think about it. But we are not those who look back and stop ploughing because we know of these things, instead, we are resolute, that our islands shall know the Law from Luzon, Visayas to Mindanao. Our country shall know the Law of the Lord and it shall be reborn in a day. This is what the Lord says about the destiny of our country:

“A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice; he will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth. In his law the islands will put their hope.”

This is what God the Lord says — he who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it, who gives breath to its people, and life to those who walk on it: “I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness. Isaiah 42:3-7 (NIV)

What does it say my dear brothers? Simple, let us all put our trust in the Lord even as we will all go and vote for our officials this May 10. Let us choose wisely according to the merits of what we already know is true, right and noble. Not according to our relatives or friends or what money can dictate to us. Let us use our mind and conscience to choose wisely.

The need for vision

True leaders give their lives for the people but pretenders would rather use the lives of the people to promote themselves. This character may not be easily distinguished at the first but one can see him for who he is by the goals and priorities he had in his life. If he had his income changed many times at the span of a few years of service, bought cars which could not even be afforded by his salary in the service, it does tell us truly where he placed the money of the people. Goals are necessary and without them there could be no place to go but chaos. If a leader has a genuine goal to change his country, his community, we can first see that by his involvement and the means he used to that end. We cannot simply believe the words of promises which do not bring results. Think for one of those who distribute sacks of rice and money during this period of time.

This same people will double and even more than triple the amount you are getting now from the government projects that they will be micromanaging. They are investing now for a sinister purpose. Therefore you need to vote for a leader who knows where to go and knows how to start. When I say he knows where to go, ask him, what he has accomplished in his short stint of life if he is just a fresh graduate. Had he finished well in college, or simply an average student? Had he been blacklisted as unruly? Or a warmonger in the community? How had he managed the things he had in life? Or if aged and old already, how did he help his tribe or community? In this way, we find those who are action oriented, those who did most to truly help their communities for the good of it. Rather than those who are idle as babblers, those who merely promise but failed miserably to deliver the goods. Of such people avoid, they will corrupt your ways.

The character of a leader

The single greatest contribution of great leaders is probably their character. They have been known to stand and resist the temptation of engaging in other activities unworthy of their time and priorities. Morality again is needed as your closest companion only obeys in truth because of your moral authority. When Joseph Estrada lost his moral authority in all his house and cabinets, he lost everything and though he was elected as a president, the people’s outrage of his moral failure caused him to flee and later get imprisoned. The Filipinos are both capable for these strong changes in governance when they really wanted to see changes come to benefit the masses.

They are now tired of rhetoric so that what must be done should be done. The strongest advertisement is not the billboards but the single testimony of a person to a friend of the character of a leader that would be valued and treasured for a long time. When our leaders would have this kind of resolve, then I know I would be seeing the generation that would finally lift up and remove the shame that has covered our nation since the time Marcos decided to stay put in power regardless of the lives that would be affected.

Let us remember, true leadership is service, and we can serve to our hearts desire as long as we know that we are there to serve. It does matter who wins, those who get elected should have a great desire for true service and not only for name plates and decorations. The single greatest act we can do now is to rid ourselves of shame that has enveloped us. We can start doing this by praying for true release of the mercy of God for our country. Derek Prince who wrote “Live by Faith” once said that those who pray are the ones who dictate the course of history regardless of those who are ruling. If we are living this truth, we must be praying daily that God’s righteousness and anointing will help our nation to stand on its feet.

Voting for true leaders

Given the number of choices that we have this election and the many parties clamouring to seat in an office, let us choose to put those who are fit for the office. The one question that we need to understand is to know who are the righteous ones? In simple terms, we have to find those who are capable of serving our people. The word capable comes from the root word of ability which is able. The only able ones are also those who can serve out of true passion to see their country lifted from poverty. These genuine ones can be known because they have no other will but for the good of the nation. Not everyone however capable, will get to hold a political office, even so, it does not mean you can’t serve your people. The church is already a microcosm of community with all kinds of people, rich and poor, dumb and intellectual so you can ask as well to serve in that area if it fits you better to be there.

Otherwise, thinking of shepherding a nation of an 85 million people will be disastrous to one who does not even know how to provide for his family! Do you love your wife well enough to provide for her vision, clarity of understanding, income and children who are also walking in the path of life? If not, think again, you failed in the first test. Or do you love your community enough to have actually helped in fund raising for the poor, the sick or given livelihoods for them? Think again. And if you have fulfilled all these things, there is one last nagging question, are you running for political office because God wants you there or you have set yourself up because you simply want it?

There is a way that we think is right for us but it can lead to our demise. Before King David became a king, he was first the king of the sheeps, and also the distraught, those who were useless to the standards of a society. God anointed him to be king while a teenager but never got to be the real king until King Saul died. Those years in the wilderness formed his character to become the unflinching general who pursued his enemies and wiped them out of the Promised Land paving the way for the peaceful and economically productive days of King Solomon. Let us vote for those who are capable of handling the position they are seeking for, those who have done real good for the people and not only benefited their companies out of the coffers of the poor. Let us examine them well, stick to those which are good and expose the lies and deceptions of those who are trying to mislead others into the pit. Those who will form traps will themselves fall to it. Examine their track records and cast away those who are liars.

A wise man will hear and increase in learning, and a man of understanding will acquire wise counsel. Proverbs 1:5

Listen to counsel and accept discipline, that you may be wise the rest of your days. Proverbs 19:20

Many plans are in a man’s heart, but the counsel of the LORD will stand. Proverbs 19:21

Selfish ambition destroys

What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Is not the source your pleasures that wage war in your members? You lust and do not have; so you commit murder. You are envious and cannot obtain; so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures. James 4:1-3

The election related violence in the Philippines and also in other countries are symptoms of people lusting for power. The flesh is always stronger than the spirit, and the only way they think they can get to this is to do it by immediate gratification either by coercion or vote buying. Some do both so that they wanted to ensure their victory. I did not observe such violence during witnessing local elections held in Germany. What distinguishes this people is their obedience to the law from the traffic lights, to the prompt and honest payment of their gasoline bills at the gas station even when no gasoline boy is present and looking after you. Where law and order is honored by everyone, all the people are happy.

Greed is the destroyer of civilization and once a country turns to greed for power, the downward spiral has occurred. This is the reason why Marcos probably both started an upward and downward spiral altogether in this country. When one has been taken by this grip for power, it is hard to be free and this is the reason why many of these political dynasties are unwilling to relinquish control of their strongholds. For them ruling is easier with a family member because you can just dictate what course you want to take rather than going through the standard procedures of bidding or conferencing and scheduling. Grace Cielo Padaka, the Governor of Isabela is an example of a great woman whose will is strong and whose handicap she has overcome long before. When she changed the procedures of governance in her province, most of the loyalists reacted since these people were bound with the familiar, that of the former governor. Change is the constant matter here on earth from speciation to extinction but only the nature of human beings is hard to acquaint for these changes so that this would be one of the traits that would be mined and used by the coming anti-Christ.

Another difference I observed between the Germans and most Filipinos is the way they plan things. The first one plans to do things not just 5 years or 10 years but look forward for as far as the next 500 years. For example, we were once travelling to Wremen where a stone church is still standing after 800 years in the same area; it has been used constantly as an observation deck for the tides and floods as well as a refuge.  The builders of the church ensured that what they were building will not only be useful for the present but even for more than 800 years into the centuries. Ponder about this, if the present politicians will not try to look for a seat because they need one for manipulating and cheating the people, but instead use it to serve not just this generation but the next 800 years of their people, they will understand that they can only do so much.

And that to do things aright, they need God to fulfil it and no one man can finish all the job there is. This will make us conclude of the matter, that all our plans, all our purpose is greatly tied to what all the others can also accomplish for our country. No one then will try to pull the others down but will instead help each one to finish his projects well because they are not only thinking of today but also of tomorrow.