Will America Survive the Next Catastrophe?

When Jesus was getting ready to leave the world, he knew he would leave his disciples behind. In chapter 17 of St. John was the longest prayer Jesus prayed that was recorded. Jesus asked God not to take his disciples out of the world because he needed them to carry on his mission to different nations and across the world. He also prayed fervently to God to protect them from the evil one, and that the disciples to be united. The importance of unity among the disciples is very important to Jesus, even today.

America as a nation will only survive the next catastrophe, if and only if we unite together, not after the disaster, but before the evil days. However, the disunity of what is being displayed by the political leaders is a recipe for the downfall of the nation. There is a time in governing people when you stop playing politics with every issue. Getting before the camera to immediately attack, or oppose any proposal brought forth by the President without evaluating the package is leading this nation to eventual self destruction. The heated debate about raising the debt ceiling by in the Congress has claimed its casualties. Can we learn from history? At the moment of obsession, a good idea becomes very dangerous. Those leaders who fail to listen to others ended up destroying their nations. Political crises that broke out in the Middle East is a lesson for the United States to learn that the government of autocracy based on monolithic ideology of one party, is a sure way to the destruction of American democracy. Nobody is an island. A tree cannot make a forest. The ideological arrogance of belittling other people’s solution to pending problem is not only immature; such people should not be in government. Democracy only works when all the voices are heard and a decision is made by a group of people after considering all the options brought to the table. The public policy generated may not be perfect, but addresses the concerns of the majority for the betterment of the nation. If we choose to be obsessed by party politics without considering the opinions of others, America is on a fast lane to eventual destruction.

A very brilliant man was studying for his final examination before graduation. His classmates were making noise. He left the class and decided to study in seclusion. He therefore locked himself in one of the empty classrooms to study. While studying, he fell asleep. The noise of his fellow students after the examination woke him up. By the time he got to the examination hall, the examination time was already over. He had to wait for another year before he was able to take the examination. The examination was only given once in a year.

There is an old leadership-training slogan that says, "If you are not leading, or following, get the heck out of the way." When I was told this in a Christian youth training camp, I asked the camp director, "Is there a room for cheering spectators?" He answered with a smile and said, "Yes in deed, cheering spectators stay on the sidelines! Do you want to stay on the sidelines, young man?" he asked me. Today, obstructionists are being cheered for disrupting the process that does not fit their political agenda. They are ready to destroy the process as long as they do not have their way. It is either their way, or the highway. Those who cheer such division are putting nails in the casket of our democracy. The truth is, nobody has all the answers. Solution comes by collective efforts to achieve a purpose that benefits the entire nation. If we are yet to learn such lesson, we might have lost the essence of true democracy which other nations should run away from. We are a nation in both economic and political crises. Egocentrism is s recipe for disaster. Refusal to compromise is a dangerous political game.

In the end, the winners are those who consider the sufferings of others, by allowing the Spirit of God to lead them for a greater good. Whether this nation is going to survive the next catastrophe depends on how well we are prepared to work together. The present political conflicts being orchestrated by those who are slaves to their own ideologies is a recipe for a colossal disaster.

A nation in crisis, a church so divided, a people so disenchanted. Only God Almighty can deliver us from ourselves.

By Yinka Vidal, author, Closer Walk With Jesus.