What I am about to share made a major impact on me when I heard it earlier this week. Now, in my house, anything worth talking about is worth turning into a story, so let me tell you what happened:

Wednesday night our small, "reforming" church met, as always, in one of the homes of a covenant member--well, in the summer, in the backyard. As always, we had a time of worship, of sharing about the Lord's grace and goodness to us in the past week, of hearing updates about and praying for several supported missionaries, and then sharing of individual and corporate prayer requests.

As always, we then split into smaller groups--one in the living room and one in the dining room--so that more people could have opportunity to share requests and to pray. As always, there were people from toddlers to teens to Gramma R.--who remembers every detail of moving from Oklahoma to California during the Dust Bowl, but most of the time not where she is now; White, Spanish, Chinese, Black, Jewish--and a Hindu family, Bhutanese immigrants newly arrived from 17 years in a Nepalese refugee camp, who have found shelter in church homes and whose 3 children are now learning the Word of God in a Christian school (the father, Sri R., asked for prayer concerning a job interview today).

As always, one elder sat with each group. We have been blessed beyond words by 2 men who, after growing up in the standard evangelicalism of the 1950s Midwest, went on to sit at the feet of Francis Schaeffer at L'Abri for 3 months, where they both became resolved to retain a stranglehold on all the truth of the entire counsel of God, no matter the hardship this could cause with either a hostile culture or an apathetic evangelical community. They came to the South Bronx to start raising their families--18 children (10 birth, 8 adopted) between them by the time they finished--and found a tiny church--eventually to join the CCCC--at the very nadir of the decay of this once-thriving borough, reasoning that if they owned the Gospel of Jesus Christ to be true and powerful to save, it would be true and powerful to save here as well as anywhere else. They have eschewed church growth techniques with a passion, preferring covenantal faithfulness to large crowds looking for entertainment. They have also looked, and taught us by example to look, for opportunities to evangelise and catechise and disciple in all circumstances. (You'd think I love them dearly, and you'd be right).

Now the elders have their strong political convictions, which will emerge if you engage them privately; but they also fully grasp their roles in the two kingdoms, preaching and praying in accord with the eternal prophetic Word, as no respecters of parties or platforms or political personages, but rather speaking the truth and trusting the Lord to sovereignly work out his own glory and the good of his people through, among other means, the agency of human government.

So I was not at all surprised, but still deeply moved Wednesday night when, after others had offered prayers for guidance and wisdom in the election, Pastor J., head bowed over his own dining room table, simply prayed, I believe in full accord with the will of the Lord:

"Lord, please do not give us the leaders we deserve. Once again have mercy on us and give us better leaders than we deserve."

In Christ,
Paul S