Are we lowering our expectations?

I watched the debate Sunday night between four of the gubernatorial candidates. Diversity was apparent in that they included a woman running for governor. And for all of us who are out of shape (who need to be on a diet of water and crackers for four weeks), we were comforted that one of our kind was in the line up. You know, the big man for little Georgians. Then, the guy with the greasy top reminded me of a John Bircher plucked out of the Flynt River in the 1960’s and still trying to dry out and figure out what he believes. The flat top model candidate gave me the idea he came straight from auto shop at technical school. At least among Democrat Party candidates we have diversity, but little in dynamo.

Where have all the good candidates gone? It seems that Georgians, and Americans at large, are being asked to keep lowering our expectations of what a governor or senator should be. Our memories are being faded as to the great men and women who occupied state level offices. Remember former Governor Carl Sanders? He was and still is one of the great southern gentleman-statesmen. Former U.S. Senator Richard Russell and former U.S. Rep. Carl Vinson were of such national stature that they were frequents in the Oval Office. And of course, a state senator from Sumter County rose to become President of the United States on the heels of a grave Constitutional crisis.

There seems to be a trend across various strata of life and that is to re-evaluate downward what we should expect of ourselves and those who represent us. Fifty years ago a good southern, evangelical church-going person was expected to attend church three times a week: Sunday morning for Sunday School and worship, Sunday night for special training and evening service, and Wednesday night for Bible study and prayer meeting.

Since so many people started just dropping off from attending these services, we no longer, for most churches, include a Sunday evening worship time in our schedule, and only a small percentage of the Sunday morning crowd ever makes it to Wednesday night activities. So, we plan down; we re-structure down. We expect less.

The same downward trend, sadly, applies to our level of holiness. Once the Ten Commandments were a starting place for holiness. The commandments, as originally drawn, were that which separated us from the animal kingdom. Now, anyone who keeps the Ten Commandments may be compared to a Billy Graham or Mother Teresa. Really, is it such a great accomplishment not to kill your next door neighbor? Or is it such an ordeal that everyone keeps to his own wife?

No, Jesus was the one who raised the bar of expectation. Holiness is more than “not killing” a neighbor; it expands to the idea of praying for your enemies and blessing those who do you harm.

When French Statesman Alexis de Tocqueville visited America first part of the 19th century, he observed that the strength of America was to be found in its small churches throughout the land. America could be facing a dearth of dynamic and competent men and women in government because the church continues to lower its standards and expectations of its own members.

There is one sure connection between church and state. The church should be giving its best to the government in the form of bright, moral, and verbal men and women. But where are they in the church?