It’s Friday! Sun’s out! Psyched up! Let’s go!
☀️Mr. Speaker Knows the Motto
I’ll bite. What is a “Speaker of the House”?
We hadn’t had one for over three weeks, but not for lack of drama. Then we got one on Wednesday, and now the drama is just different. What’s all this about?
The Job
Schoolhouse Rock taught us how a bill becomes law on Capital Hill, but the Schoolhouse writers must not have thought Speaker of the House was interesting enough. The “House” is the federal House of Representatives, and the Speaker is like the dad, except in this example dad decides what needs to be decided more than making the final decision. The Speaker gives permission for other members of the House to speak, calls for and declares votes, appoints committees, and is second in line after the Vice President to become President if there’s a problem. Speaker is the only House role explicitly referred to in the Constitution, and there have only been 56 Speakers in our 300 year history. Recently it’s been more of a spectacle.
In the checks and balances design of our government the House has responsibilities to pass federal legislation, to oversee the executive branch which could include impeachment, and even elect a President if there’s a tie in the Electoral College vote. The Speaker presides over all those processes.
The Man
Our new Speaker is Mike Johnson, a Representative from Louisiana who has been serving Congress since 2017. He’s got his law degree, and he worked as an attorney for the Alliance Defense Fund, now called the Alliance Defending Freedom. He is a professing Christian, married for 24 years, a father of four, and has been attending Baptist churches. His record of voting in the House is about as conservative as there is these days.
In his first address to the House he said that what distinguishes the U.S. is our motto: “in God we trust.” He said believing in God separates us from the Communists/Marxists who begin with the premise that there is no God. He quoted G.K. Chesterton that America is the only nation started with a shared creed, not that we are born equal but that all men are created equal, endowed with inalienable rights by our Creator.
Here is what we could call the Johnson 7 -
Put human dignity (as divine image-bearers) at the top of the list, and oh, the places we could go.
The Reaction
I’m only judging by what I’ve had time and algorithmic advantage to see, but the reaction has been…fair to freaking out. Somehow he did get unanimous support from the 220 Republican House members, and that might be more concerning to me than anything. I had never heard this Mike Johnson’s name until Wednesday, but I admit that I haven’t been keeping score on the House very closely.
Christians looking for any positive sign in our handbasket-to-hell culture rejoice that he’s a professing Christian and has come out of the narrow gate openly talking about God. Other Christians are already irritated that he’s supporting Israel (the ones I’ve seen don’t support Hamas, but they are anti-anything giving off a Dispensational whiff, and seem to tie any arguments of political support to the theological position), or that he’s borrowed racial talking points about his sons, saying that his adopted son with black skin does not have the same advantages as his biological son with white skin.
Non-Christians have brought out their Ugly Names and Scary Labels. MSNBS calls Mike “the most unabashedly Christian nationalist speaker in history” and it’s a “tragedy.” Who even needs to define that, right? It sounds bad, dangerous, a guaranteed killjoy as Johnson has been working to “erode the separation of church and state and abortion and LGBTQ rights.” Or when Johnson stated that he thinks God is the one who raises up leaders, some call him a “christofascist.” Run away!
I bring this up because for as much as I think Christians should care about honoring Jesus Christ as Lord in the public square, which includes in public office, we should be glad for this kind of negative reaction, at least the way the Lord told us to be. Joe Rigney wrote an article about responding to slander a couple weeks before we got our new Speaker, but the manipulation effort applies, apples to apples.
“be alert lest you begin to internally flinch at things that the Bible teaches....what label makes you flinch? What name will you go to great lengths to avoid being called? “Racist,” “woke,” “Christian nationalist,” “fundamentalist,” “right-wing,” “left-wing, “coward,” “quarrelsome,” “compromiser”–any of these (and more) can become steering labels, depending on the community whose approval we seek.” —Brothers, Don’t Be Steered
Rigney’s point is that we should be seeking God’s approval above all and in all, so that those who revile our good behavior in Christ will either ask about our hope or be put to shame. Johnson is just a high profile example in the current news cycle.
Up Next
Be like Mike, or like Mike, or don’t. But all of us must pray for Mike, and for all those in high positions, with supplications and intercessions and thanksgivings, that we may lead peaceful and godly lives (1 Timothy 2:1-2). Only God knows how long Mr. Johnson’s turn in the Speaker’s chair will be, or how many more billions of dollars the House is going to send to foreign wars. But the mercies of the Lord are new every morning, and we’ve all got work—and speaking—to do for Him today.
☀️Looking Around
Mayor Nehring announced yesterday that garbage, recycling, and yard waste rates are going down in Marysville in 2024. Read more about the reductions here.
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Speaking of Nehrings, Snohomish County Councilman Nate Nehring announced that cash doesn’t belong in the the garbage can, at least not yet. On Wednesday the Council voted unanimously on an ordinance to keep accepting cash and stem the tide of a cashless economy.
☀️Upcoming Events
Trunk or Treat - tomorrow, October 28, 11:00am - 1:00pm at Cascade Christian Reformed Church. See the Facebook Event page for more info.
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Have an event that you’d like the Sun to share? Send an email with your information to: office@marysvillesun.com
☀️Friday Fun
One of the most terrifying costumes EVAR!
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