Jimmy Carter

Last night I read an article stating that Jimmy Carter had been in hospice care for one year and was alert, aware of events going on and doing as well as could be expected. He is now the longest living president at 99 years old. His wife of 77 years passed away just a few months ago.

Carter was, in my opinion, not one of our strongest presidents. The country suffered under his leadership, but historians will have to decide how much of that was due to his leadership and how much of it was beyond his control. Presidents get blamed for a lot of things that they really do not control, and they often get (take) credit for good things that happened in spite of their leadership. A hundred years from now historians will be in better shape to point out the positives and negatives of Carter's presidency. We do know that the country begin a quick turn-around when Ronald Reagan became president limiting Carter to a one-term presidency.

However, Carter was a much more inspirational leader after he left the White House. His work with Habitat for Humanity inspired many people to pick up a hammer and make a difference in their communities. He received a statesmanship award for his work in improving relations between the US and China. He established the Carter Center which monitored elections around the world. I have no doubt that historians will find that his greatest accomplishments occurred after he left the White House.

Jimmy Carter was also probably the most religious and moral president this nation has ever had. Perhaps one of the reasons his presidency wasn't more effective was that he refused to play the political games common in Washington. He couldn't be bought, and, to my knowledge, he refused to compromise his religious convictions. That alone sets him apart from the corrupt and immoral politicians that thrive in Washington, DC. In this age of compromise in which we live he should be an example to us all.

Jimmy Carter continued to teach his Sunday school class in his home church after leaving the presidency. I wonder how many ex-presidents became Sunday school teachers after leaving office. He may be the only one. During his campaign he was not hesitant to talk of his faith, and he certainly lived it during his presidency and afterwards. If someone seeking the highest office of the land was not reluctant to speak of his faith, why are we so hesitant to do the same?

America would be better off with more people like Jimmy Carter, a man unashamed of his Christian faith, a man who not only spoke of that faith but lived it every time he swung a hammer building a home for someone else. He not only followed the Prince of Peace, he worked for peace both inside and outside the White House. His life should be an example to each of us who name Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.