Honor in high places

I recently had a longing to hear the sounds of noble speech.  Too much of the current content of radio takes its toll on the human spirit.  I remembered listening and watching portions of the funeral service of President Ronald Reagan, so I went to "you tube"  and searched for Prime Minister Mulrooney from Canada.  I remembered listening to his tribute to our President.

 I watched and listened again to his uplifting and honoring message that day in that service where he elevated his friend -- our departed President.  Both the eloquent words and the dignity, as well as the marvelous voice of the Prime Minister were captivating.  So noble were the memories.  So honoring were the comments.  So encouraging were the images that were brought back to my mind.

I also remembered the Prime Minister of England, Margaret Thatcher.  What a dynamic and forceful lady and leader she was.  On that day of the funeral she could not speak in person due to personal health issues.  She had taken the time, however, to pre-record a video of her tribute to her friend and compatriot -- our president.  The video tribute which was shared was astounding and outstanding.  I watched again that video which was played at the funeral.  It was a captivating memorial given by one great leader to another. 

I began to search for the evidence of why President Reagan was so honored by his friends, and even those who had been his foes in politics and on the world stage.  I watched his speech given in 1964 and another given at the Republican national convention in 1980.  I wished as I watched and listened. . . "is there anyone in leadership today that could, and would, stand up and communicate these same principles as he did?"

 I feel that his success was a composite of many good things.  He loved his country.  He had high morals.  His self-deprecating humor made you feel that you knew him personally.  He stood his ground on the issues that really mattered.  He called things like they were, and his enemies became his friends.  He was not afraid to talk about God and made frequent references to the Bible.  He was real. 

He fought against many of the precise issues that are again being dragged through the cluttered streets of our public forum today.  Government intrusion, socialism, over-regulation, spending, the economy, and etc.  I noticed however, that where he used the term "billions" we now use "trillions".
This blog really isn't about a man, however. . . it is about honor.  I pray that we haven't totally lost our sense of propriety and honor and Godly morality in the realm of our political leadership. 

It doesn't take much searching in the books of the Kings and Chronicles to see that God very much weighed and counted the actions of kings.  He saw the direction and measured the response of the leaders of nations.  He heard what was whispered in the bedchamber.  He knew what the thoughts of men were.  He still does.

There were times when God sent a prophet to face a king with correction and warning.  It may have been a story of a lamb to a king who had sinned.  It may have been a prophet with another copy of the Word delivered to a king who had burned the first copy.  It may have been the hand of God himself writing the summary of a kings life on a wall for all to see.  God knows the thoughts and intents of the heart.

May God give us leadership that is in tune and in touch with higher things; leadership that has a sense of what is noble and just and pure; leaders that are not afraid to humble themselves in the presence of God and humbly ask for guidance.  We need it so much today.