This past week the USA TODAY Newspaper had a front page story entitled, Behind its united front, nation is divided as ever: Terror changes USA’s mood, but not its attitude. The paper reprinted the 2000 Presidential Election map (USATODAY.com), which shows how the counties of America voted in the last election. While the large majority of counties went to Bush, the densely populated urban areas went to Gore. In 2000, the rural and suburban half of America voted for Bush and the urban and minority half of America voted for Gore.

We are at a crossroads in our nation's history, evenly divided over fundamental issues. The paper focused on similar-sized cities which are representative of the cultural divide. One was Montclair, NJ and the other was Franklin, TN. They found that these communities represent the split in values concerning issues such as religion, abortion, homosexuality, guns and the role of government.

"In Franklin, 64% say they attend church or religious activities once a week or more, compared with 36% in Montclair…Nearly seven times as many people in Franklin as in Montclair own guns…the towns are at least 30 percentage points apart on how they felt about gay civil rights, the death penalty, illegitimacy and the role of government…Top priorities in Montclair included health care and environmental protection. Franklin’s top concerns included declining moral values."

The article goes on to say, "Religion is the wellspring of the culture gap." One’s religious and moral beliefs are vital to one’s opinions on the issues.

Where is our country headed? Which road will we take? Our leaders will give us the answer. The important question is, "Who will lead us?" There is a core group on both sides of the divide that are deeply committed and passionate about their worldviews. But, the masses in the middle apathetically follow the leaders on complex cultural and political issues, because they do not have a strong core value system. As Francis Schaeffer said, the priorities of most Americans are personal peace and personal prosperity. These two issues arouse the most passion and interest.

Therefore, it is a minority that will lead us into the future. This is why we, the followers of Jesus Christ, must be leaders! Who will lead in your family? Who will lead in your school? Who will lead in your workplace? Who will lead in the media? Who will lead in entertainment? Who will lead in politics? Who will lead in religion? The passionate, active and competent leaders will determine the road we travel down as a nation.

If we love our families, our schools, our communities and our nation, we cannot be content with our own personal peace and prosperity. We must proclaim and live out the Good News of Jesus Christ and the biblical worldview upon which our country was founded.

It begins at home, but it cannot stop there. Will you be a leader in your spheres of influence? Will you raise your children to be leaders or followers? Will Olivet Baptist Church be a leader in our community, or will we be content with our own peace and prosperity?

The answers to these questions will determine where we are headed in the long run. Let us--the followers of Jesus Christ, who was full of grace and truth--lead the way!