Living your values out loud

By Richard Land - Feb 12, 2008 - 1

Richard Land at SBC - iVoteValues.com

Photo by Van Payne

I can’t imagine there is an adult living in the U.S. that isn’t keenly aware that we are in the midst of quite an unusual campaign to elect our next president. And for at least a segment of the population, there is a growing awareness of the need to weigh the individual candidates’ beliefs and convictions in light of their personal values.

This is the basis of an emphasis we launched nearly four years ago—the iVoteValues.com initiative—that called on voters to consider their faith-informed values when they went to the polls. The effort, remodeled for 2008, underscores the need for all Americans, especially those with personal religious convictions, to rely on their values—and not their pocketbook—in making choices for their elected representatives. The initiative stresses the need to be a responsible citizen by registering and then voting on Election Day.

Yet considering our values on just one day a year falls far short of what God expects from us. Our biblically founded beliefs should direct our thoughts, speech, and activities every day of the year. That is the idea behind the launch of iLiveValues.com.

While voting is a critical civic obligation, we make important decisions every day—decisions in which our faith should play an important part. Whether in our home, our workplace, or the marketplace, we have an opportunity to live out our values.

The iLiveValues.com Web site is designed as an online and interactive aid for those who want to do a better job of allowing their faith to show.

The iLiveValues.com site has matchless components—audio streams featuring the best of my weekly radio program, Richard Land Live!, and highlights of our daily For Faith & Family broadcasts and an exciting new audio offering— Richard Land Answers —in which I deal concisely with issues of the day. You also can stay connected to each of these unique audio outlets via podcasting.

I am hopeful you will find the iLiveValues.com site an informative place to visit frequently and discover the wonder of living your values out loud! I look forward to seeing you there.

The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission works to educate Americans about the importance of voting as well as many other moral and social issues we face in today’s society. If you would like to help us continue these efforts, please click here.

Further Learning

Learn more about: Faith, Citizenship, Christian Citizenship, Community Service

1 comments (post your own) feed

1 On Feb 21st, 2008, at 10:15pm, Greg A wrote:

Although I am a liberal Christian, I totally agree with conservatives that they should vote according to their faith and spiritual values.

Where I tend to part ways is on how one defines those values.  Many conservatives have a very very short list of what seems to matter to them: abortion, homosexuality, public religious symbols, etc.

In the last election cycle I received a voters guide in the bulletin of a conservative church I was attending and it made absolutely no mention of core Christian values like justice, helping the poor, peacemaking, etc.

Even though these are direct commandments of Jesus!

And, of course, all the “Jesus approved” candidates were Republicans.

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