Wallace G. Smith

The delight my family felt at seeing Ben Ownby returned to his parents was almost indescribable – a feeling that we know we share with many.

And to have the "bonus" of Shawn Hornbeck's return as well – it's almost too much, in the most wonderful way imaginable.

Well, it is almost over. In fact, many of you will read this well after it is over. Soon, December 21, 2012—and all of the New Age delirium associated with that date—will be a faded memory. No planetary collision with a “Planet X” or “Nibiru.” No reversal of the earth’s magnetic poles. No UFO rescues. For that matter, no new global wave of peace and prosperity. December 22 will bring the same worldly worries as December 20—and December 21 will have made hardly any difference, like any other day. So, what do we do now?

Many who were listening Friday morning to news of the mind-numbing slaughter of innocents at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut are still dazed, bewildered and in grief. Twenty small children lay dead, felled by a coward’s bullets, with eight adults (including the shooter and his mother) dead beside them. What has become of our society that people commit such abominable acts? How has this become the state of affairs?

On November 6, the citizens of the United States of America re-elected President Barack Obama. Throughout the campaign, the President promised a better America for its citizens, and his campaign slogan was simple: “Forward.”  Will the President be able to fulfill his promises?  Is there reason to have faith in America’s ability to move forward?  Does the Bible have anything to say about the challenges facing a reconfirmed President and the ailing country he will lead?