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I don't usually like to share with people outside of my parents who I intend on voting for, but this time, I want to share with the readers of this blog why I am deciding to cast my vote for Barack Obama in this election. It's a lengthy story, so it might actually come in the form of a couple of separate blogs.

During the primaries, I actually casted my support behind Republican candidate Mike Huckabee. When he ended up not getting the nomination, it put me back at square one where I had to beginning learning about the candidates who did get the nominations of their respective parties. Normally, I don't even know which way I'm leaning as I watch the conventions and the debates, and even the campaign stops that are televised on CNN and MSNBC. This year has been a little bit different for me however. Barack Obama hooked me during his convention speech. He said we may not agree on abortion, but we can at least agree to work together to reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies. He said we may not agree on same-sex marriages, but at least we can agree that gays and lesbians should be allowed to visit their partners in hospitals and have some of the same societal liberties the rest of us have. In that moment, I saw him reaching out to conservative evangelicals like me. It also got me thinking about what I had learned about my own prejudices regarding homosexuality while in seminary. I can't force my viewpoints onto anybody, but can only pray for God to change their hearts and minds. My viewpoints come from my relationship with Christ and the change He has brought about in my life. I also started to think about something else I learned at seminary. Lutherans do quite the job of serving their neighbor and always watching out for those who have less than they do. While numbers throughout the denomination are in decline, their giving to organizations that deal with hunger and homelessness and the like has actually gone up and is at the top compared to other Christian denominations (at least as far as what I heard from professors at seminary). This led me to start thinking not only about abortion and homosexuality, but also about my parents who did everything they could to pay for my bachelor's degree, the people across the nation who are losing their jobs and having a hard time making ends meet. I found myself asking which candidate would best serve my neighbor. Needless to say, as this campaign season has progressed, I have remained on that hook and the line has slowly been reeling in.

To continue with the fishing metaphor (hook, line, sinker), I was still looking for that sinker. If Barack Obama hooked me during his convention speech, and slowly began reeling me in during the campaign season, there had to be a sinker somewhere. It happened on Wednesday evening. I got home from church that evening. I was able to see the last 15 minutes of the 30 minute ad. The real-life stories of the struggles people are facing almost drew me to tears. By the end, I really seriously almost cried. It happened when Obama said that he learns everyday that he's not perfect. He said he will never be a perfect president. Yet he said he would listen to us when we disagree and that he would open the doors of government so that people could be involved in their own democracy again. (I don't even know what that looks like). That was my sinker. Maybe it is all rhetoric, maybe it isn't, but for me, this election is not about me. It's about my neighbor.

I'm BK (just for you, boB). I'm a conservative evangelical Christian, and I approved this message.

another job

I found another job. I will be an accompanist for the contemporary worship team at United Methodist Church in Albert Lea. Should be fun.

Christian first, American second, Republican, Democrat or Independent third

Long title, but as this political season is now in the last month, I have some comments about what I've been reading and hearing. First off, I think it's high time that I officially refer to myself as an Independent. Yes, I am conservative. Yes, I am an Evangelical Christian, but that does not mean I have to always vote for the Republican ticket. This year I am more educated about what is going on around me and have come to the conclusion that if I vote for the Republican ticket, I would be voting for myself instead of people like my parents who have done everything they can to make sure their children and grandchildren have more. I am frustrated with my fellow evangelicals who believe that abortion is the only issue they should be voting for in this election. It seems like it's the only issue in every election. Yes, I do believe life begins at conception, but I also believe that it's the church's responsibility to pray for people they meet who are thinking about having an abortion. Body of Christ, it is our responsibility to work to make the change, not the government's. When I think about people in this world who consider having an abortion, I wonder if they believe God's Word, where we read that God formed us in our mother's womb and knows the number of the hairs on our head. I am worried that many of us within the Body of Christ want to force our conservative convictions onto the rest of society. I don't believe that's the right thing to do. Until God changes the hearts of those who wish to have abortions, all I can do is love them just as they are and pray that God, through the power of the Holy Spirit, will be at work in their hearts to draw them to Himself.

Just my thoughts and my thoughts alone. These are not the thoughts of any other person that I am aware of.