AT a time when the media and evangelical Christians in the US have expressed doubts about the faith of Barack Obama, the president himself has said his Christian faith has been a sustaining force for him over the past two years in Washington.
Speaking at the National Prayer Breakfast, on Feb 3, he said: “The presidency has a funny way of making a person feel the need to pray.”
He said his faith in God developed 20 years when he signed up to work as a community organizer in Chicago.
“It was through that experience working with pastors and lay people, trying to heal the wounds of hurting neighborhoods that I came to know Jesus Christ myself and embrace him as my Lord and Savior,” Obama said.
This is perhaps the first time that Obama had given Americans a closer look at his faith life.
Talking about his prayers, he said though they are sometimes general, they can also get specific.
“Lord, give me patience as I watch Malia go to her first dance where there will be boys,” he said jocularly.
He regularly prays for the ability to help others, for humility, and to walk closer to God, Obama added.
The timing of his testimony is important coming as it does at a time when polls continue to reveal many Americans believe he is Muslim.
Obama revealed that he was aware of this issue.
“When Michelle and I hear our faith questioned from time to time, we are reminded that ultimately what matters is not what other people say about us, but whether we’re being true to our conscience and true to our God,” Obama said.
He said he prays America will seek God’s face every day.
“When I wake in the morning, I wait on the Lord and I ask him to give me the strength to do right by our country and its people,” he said.
“And when I go to bed at night, I wait on the Lord, and I ask him to forgive me of my sins and look after my family and the American people. And to make me an instrument of His will,” he continued.
From the archives: More reports on Barack Obama
