5:45 Tears

I woke up at 5:45 am this morning (European time) and jumped out of bed - not my normal response - to see if any election results were in yet. To my great surprise President Elect Obama was just starting his acceptance speech. I took the laptop back to bed and cuddled under my warm blankets to watch. I was stunned. I was moved. I was hopeful and tearful. I was shocked at my own reaction.

As a general opinion I don't believe politics can change a country. Heart choices and personal transformation happen through relationships and the work of God's Spirit in our lives. Maybe explains why I'm a missionary and a psychologist. I believe culture is shaped and transformed one heart at a time. Political agenda regulates infrastructure and organizational society - but can't change the hearts of people.

But at 5:45 I started to get teary. Not just because it was so early. But because my heart was stirred. Hope swelled. Pride in statesmanship and oratory. Gratefulness for a country. Peace about an election. Challenged by a call to service & renewed patriotism. I was shockingly moved.

I brought my kids home from school early so they could watch the replay of the speech. A day they'll talk to my Grandchildren about someday. A day when race & politics & debt & war & fear were overcome. A day when people stood for hours to vote and then listened with tears running down their face as they participated in this historical night.

A wonderful self-revelation for me. An opinion changed by hope. A gratefulness for the country and politics of America.

God bless America.