The eyes of the whole world are on America. This has always been the case whenever elections come up in the US.  The level of attention this year has been unprecedented because this may well be the election that will change America’s history if the current polls have anything to say in the elections.

The presidential candidates have over the months made promises, a lot of them. As is the case with politicians, some of these promises will be kept but many others will not be. It happens all the time. The new President gets elected, he tries to keep to his promise, then other factors come to play and he finds out that some promises, if kept as promised, may cause problems for him. He talks his way around it and that issue becomes history. This is not the bane of just American politicians; we see it over and over again in the polity of many countries.

As Christians, we have a duty to ensure that good people are elected into office. We should be actively involved in the electoral system. This we can do, by praying and by performing our civic duties.  While we do this however, we need to understand that we are ambassadors of a city, whose builder and maker is God (Hebrews 11:10) 

Abraham was a wealthy man by all means. He had power and influence. In spite of all he owned and possessed however, scripture tells us that He looked for ‘a city, whose builder and maker is God’.  He believed in all the promises that God made to him and all those promises were met accordingly. Can we believe all the promises made by our politicians? I can almost hear your resounding, ‘No!’ We can however pray that God will take over their lives and lead them according to His will.

God is a promise keeper. He will do whatever He says.  ‘God isn’t a mere man. He can’t lie. He isn’t a human being. He doesn’t change his mind. He speaks and then He acts. He makes a promise and then He keeps it (Numbers 23:19, NIrv)

What a wonderful place this world would be if we can say of our leaders, ‘He speaks then He acts. He promises and then He keeps it!’ The fact is that politicians are men. It is so easy to make promises; to keep them is another matter. 

I admire Barrack Obama and his quest for the highest office in America but a few days ago, I heard him make a promise I think he may not be able to keep. He said if he were elected as President,  he would change the world.  He may be sincere in his promise, but I can only pray that if he is indeed elected as President, he will rely on God to help him fulfill his electoral promises.

Whether McCain or Obama fulfill their promises or not, as Christians, we have a consolation, God will always keep His promises to us. This is why He is God. His word is sacrosanct and no factor, pressure or lobbying can make Him change His promises towards you.

If God promises you anything, you can take it to the bank.