BAD/GOOD LEADERS
Every country in the world has had bad leaders. America actually is better than most (though that’s not much of a horn to blow). The prime reason for bad leaders is that leadership attracts the wrong type of person. They are usually FULL of themselves and have no moral qualms. Again, America’s leaders seem to be at the better end of the lower end of the human scale. We, for example, have not had a Pol Pot, Hitler, or Stalin (yet). Some think we may be headed that way.
We have seen greed and graft … like the state congressman who took bribes. We have seen some of our national congressional leaders personal worth grow faster than there was any likelihood.
We’ve had presidents and congressmen who experienced moral failures, like Kennedy, Clinton, and several others.
Mental decline while in office has been seen before. Reagan began to slip in his second term. Biden was badly slipping before he was elected (and likely would not have been elected if it were not for the privacy accorded by COVID).
Some in power were not mental heavyweights, providing wonderful word salads the moment they went off the teleprompter.
Then we had one of the most intelligent presidents in modern history who nevertheless took bad advice more than once. I had great appreciation for Jimmy Carter. His faith and intelligence seemed a welcome relief compared to Nixon. Yet he relied on the advice of advisors who were dead wrong about the economy and foreign affairs. Smart, but not wise.
If telling the truth was required we wouldn’t have had the debacle of the Affordable Care Act which tripled the cost and confusion of health insurance. “If you like your doctor you can keep your doctor. If you like your health insurance you can keep your health insurance.” … eh, both bold lies. I couldn’t keep MY insurance. It was cancelled. The price of the lowest cost “improved” policy tripled the price we had been paying. Our maximum out of pocket expenses went from $2,500 to nearly $12,000. Obamacare priced my family OUT of the insurance marketplace altogether. Thankfully, we found an alternative route through faith-based medical cost sharing. That saved us more than $500/month.
A bit before my time we had a racist president who treated his white house workers of color badly. I’m ashamed to mention that President Wilson was not a nice person.
Today we have Trump. He’s not a shining example of purity, but he gets good things done (some might disagree). He has cut over a billion in useless government spending. I like that. He has begun to attack fraud through government programs. I like that, too. And he is working to clean out illegal voting. I like that. But that doesn’t make him a nice person, does it! (NO!)
In fact, there are so few “good” leaders in America that we could probably fit them all in a Greyhound Coach.
Thankfully, America’s leaders, under God, have been on the upper end of the “bad” half of the scale. Other countries have had truly EVIL leaders. What countries, you ask? Which continent do you want to start with? I can think of many. Most recently, Iran’s leader killed his own people. The military shot protesters then sent goons to the nearby hospitals to execute anyone who came in with a gunshot wound.
But, hey! Don’t you want to hear about a GOOD leader? There have been a few of those, too. We should celebrate those who do the right things for the right reasons.
In 2 Chronicles 20 we read about one GOOD leader, Jehoshaphat. He was faced with a terrible problem. Three enemies had joined forces and had crossed the border to take him in battle. He was afraid (v2), his army was powerless against so many (v12). But he had a priest who believed and trusted God. It says that all Judah (including wives and children) stood before the LORD. “And the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jahaziel … a Levite … and he said, ‘Listen…Thus says the LORD to you, “Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed at this great horde, for the battle is not yours but God’s … Stand firm, hold your position, and see the salvation of the LORD on your behalf.” (vv 13-17)
Jehoshaphat not only listened, he obeyed, AND he worshiped. Then he sent singers in front of his army to sing praises to God. When they got to the place of battle, the Judean soldiers stood still. While they watched the three armies against them killed each other.
Can you imagine that? Jehoshaphat did what God told him to do, and because he trusted and thanked God, all went well. O, by the way, the army of Judah had a purpose. They took the rich spoil back to Jerusalem … gold, silver, jewels, food, weapons in abundance!
So, what is the lesson? Trust God and praise Him continually! Pray that God will send good and wise leaders to our country who will look to God first, last, and always. Thank God that even our poor leaders have not been truly evil ones. Bless God with praise and thanksgiving for His goodness and mercy. The Most High rules over the kingdoms of men (read the book of Daniel). No matter what, God reigns.
Copyright 2026 Donald Whelpley
[PLEASE NOTE that Don is always open to discussing the thoughts and opinions he shares here and welcomes comments as shared in the comment section. He doesn’t use other social media platforms and won’t see whatever you’d like to share with him if you post it elsewhere.
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