Schools, media, cities

An evangelical call to strategic focus in these three areas | Marvin Olasky

Illustration by Krieg Barrie

The Israelites wandered in the wilderness for 40 years, and U.S. political parties sometimes do the same. If you examine the last three 40-year periods—from 2008 back to 1968, from 1968 back to 1928, from 1928 back to 1888—you'll find that in each period one party controlled the White House 70 percent of the time, and often Congress and the Supreme Court as well. Meanwhile, the other party toiled through sandstorms.

Republican dominance during those first 40 years took a hit when financial greed led to a stock market crash. Democratic rule during the next 40 ended when greed for power led Lyndon Johnson astray and a cultural earthquake shook America's foundations. The recent GOP era had shallow roots and no way to hold on as generalized greed led to crashing markets that stopped the McCain-Palin surge.