Inauguration Thoughts

Derek Sallis is a friend and vice-president at SHOUT Ministries. Here are some thoughts he'd like to share.

Tuesday, January 20th, symbolizes a new era and a new beginning for this country. Regardless of what people’s opinions are, the United States is the greatest and most powerful country in the world today. Yet the cost to obtain that position of power and opportunity has not come without sacrifices. While we can say respectfully that the price has been paid in full by our Forefathers, our soldiers who have fought and died for this soil, and our ancestors who contributed to developing this nation, there is much that is not discussed that is mental anguish for millions in this country.
For the Black and African-American community equal rights had never been completely obtained, it is always a process that is under construction. This is true for minorities in general today. Slaves were the driving economic source in helping to build this country. After hundreds of years of free labor, broken families, mental anguish, and generational curses of ignorance, slavery was abolished. Promised reparations would never be seen. Being free was good enough for the blacks, but at the cost of being treated as second-class citizens. Whether it was treating nonwhites blatantly or indirectly as being inferior, the mental agony would continue. Civil Rights soon emerged to give primarily Blacks and African-Americans the same rights as the Caucasian human beings in the US. The costs would be heavy as progress would be made, but not without the result of death for the major leaders and contributors of a Civil Rights Movement. In the recent years this country has come to a point where it believes equal rights are being obtained. Yet the mental despair has not been lifted from the broken communities who’s ancestors worked, fought, and died to make a better country and world for their children and children’s children. Nor has the manipulative spirits in the economical, political, and social realm been lifted.
Change has always been desired, it has always been needed and it has always been discussed. When change is talked about however, people can lose power. Discussion of what is to be considered “right/good change” must be measured. Advantages and disadvantages must be calculated. These factors coming into play make change a slow process if it is to occur.
If you are a minister, how can you know what the people need if you are not seeing what goes on in their community? How can you feel the hurt and pain of the people if you only come to their environment for a visit in your new car, coming from your nice house in the suburbs or country? Then go right back to your comfortable environment when you see the kitchen is starting to get hot? What can you do if everyone around you is informing you on what the majority needs are of the people, and not putting the minority needs of the people on an equal scale for necessity? If you are going to help a people, you have to feel their burdens and have experienced their trials and tribulations in some way shape or form. Otherwise you are not really ministering.
Biblically speaking, Moses was a Hebrew, a chosen people. He was raised in the presence of Pharaoh yet watched how hard his people had to work and slave. Watching this for years was so maddening that it led Moses to commit murder against an Egyptian. That murder led Pharaoh to try and kill Moses. Even though Moses was raised as a grandson to Pharaoh, and Hebrew’s were being killed by exhaustion and oppression from the Egyptians, his murder of a real Egyptian citizen was subject to death. Moses fled Egypt but was still recognized as an Egyptian in the foreign land of Midian. Over the years all the leaders of Egypt that once wanted him dead, died. That is when the Lord called Moses to let his people go free.
Obeying this command, Moses went back to Egypt to tell Pharaoh to let his people go. Pharaoh not only refused he made their work more difficult, suggesting that he was already being courteous to them but now feels they have become lazy. This led the Hebrew leaders to become hostile with Moses for making Pharaoh do this. It was then that Moses turned to the Lord and protested in the people’s defense. The Lord responded by having to remind Moses who He was, and let Moses know that he himself is special amongst his ancestors. He went on to say, “I am the LORD. I will free you from your oppression and will rescue you from your slavery in Egypt. I will redeem you with a powerful arm and great acts of judgment. I will claim you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am LORD your God who has freed you from your oppression in Egypt” (Exodus 6:6-7). It was there that Moses went on to carry out the Lords 7 miracles that led Pharaoh to free his people. The people were delivered from captivity even though Pharaoh showed great defiance and had hardened his heart against the people and the Lords call (See Exodus chapters 1-14).
There are many ways that you can be a slave. You can be captive by having your freedom taken, have mental slavery that is a result of generational curses, or not know Jesus and be a slave to sin as Paul puts it (see Romans 6:1-23).
I heard a wise man say, “nothing is new in history, everything has happened before but is presented in a different way.” Everything we think is new, it’s been here before but in a different way, shape, or form. I could be drawing a modern-day comparison to Moses with Obama. Today we know that God’s people were set free, so let’s not forget what happened in the wilderness after they left the land of Egypt. The people were uncomfortable, impatient, discontent, and complaining of the conditions in which they were now living as a free people. This led them to sin and angered the Lord mightily. Moses was not the man to deliver the people to their promised land, Their own sinful nature led the Lord to make them wonder the wilderness for 40 years. All but two of the original Hebrew slaves who were delivered from captivity, died and never saw that land of milk and honey. It was Moses’ assistant and successor, Joshua who took them there. The Lord came to Joshua when Moses died and said, “Moses my servant is dead. Therefore, the time has come for you to lead these people, the Israelites, across the Jordan River into the land I am giving them. I promise you what I promised Moses: Wherever you set foot, you will be on land I have given you.” (Joshua 1: 2-3)
It was Joshua who continued to lead the people to the promise land. Obama could be a modern-day Moses. If so, it’s scary thinking about the wilderness that is lying right around the corner for us. Yet maybe the modern-day Moses has already come to deliver his people. Maybe the people have just been wondering for a modern-day 40 years and a modern-day Joshua has been chosen to lead.
These historical events are milestones for us in this day and age, and the world has seen milestones set before. The election of President Obama is not the answer to the injustice and problems that are persisting in this country, but his election is a step in a positive direction. That direction just happens to send a thunderous message of possibility to everyone in the United States and the entire world. Minorities now have a voice that can be heard better then ever before. What are minorities going to do with their voice and their opportunities? What is the rest of the world going to do in response? How can real unity begin to take place? Can it ever take place? It all revolves around the Truth, but everyone has to look for the Truth and must be willing to accept it. That is something we haven’t been able to do. If history does repeat itself, let us not make the same mistakes that have been made in the past.

Derek A. Sallis