The Best & Worst U.S Presidents

In honor of President's Day, C-SPAN has released a survey that ranks the best and worst U.S. Presidents in history. I generally agree with their rankings although I think John F. Kennedy is a bit overrated and some time needs to pass in order to accurately judge George W. Bush's legacy.

According to C-SPAN, here are the top U.S. Presidents:

1. Abraham Lincoln
2. George Washington
3. Franklin D. Roosevelt
4. Theodore Roosevelt
5. Harry S Truman
6. John F. Kennedy
7. Thomas Jefferson
8. Dwight D. Eisenhower
9. Woodrow Wilson
10. Ronald Reagan.

And the worst (from bottom up) :

42. James Buchanan
41. Andrew Johnson
40. Franklin Pierce
39. William Henry Harrison
38. Warren G. Harding
37. Millard Fillmore
36. George W. Bush
35. John Tyler
34. Herbert Hoover
33. Rutherford B. Hayes

Remember, although Barack Obama has assumed the 44th presidency, only 42 men served as president before him. Grover Cleveland served two non-consecutive terms and is, therefore, considered to have had two presidencies. You can view the complete rankings of all U.S. Presidents here.

God's World is Bigger Than Ours

I have had the privilege this weekend of being one of the speakers at a missions conference at Crossroads Community Church in China, Michigan. Pastor Mike Cadrette and his wife, Sharon, have been good friends to Lori and I over the years and it is always a pleasure to get to visit with their congregation. There are several of us missionaries that the church supports here and I really do enjoy getting to hear the updates from what God is doing through other ministries and in different parts of the world.

For all of us, I think it is good for us to get periodic reminders that the God we serve is much bigger than the little churches that we are a part of or the ministries in which we work. It is comforting to me to know that God is always at work in the world. There may be times that I may not feel like I’m experiencing that reality, but the fact remains that He is in the business of changing lives and He doesn’t show partiality in doing so.

While reflecting on these truths, I can’t help but think about the current election season that we Americans are in. It seems like the petty narrow-mindedness is entering new levels and, to be honest with you, I’m disgusted by it. Unfortunately, it appears that some that are leading this wave of negativity identify themselves as Christ followers. The extreme religious right is losing its grip on the young evangelical vote and it looks like desperation is setting in.

I don’t claim to know how Jesus would vote if he were alive in the U.S. today or how he would campaign were He running for office, but I’m fairly certain that He wouldn’t engage in the spreading of rumors, intentionally lying or below-the-belt name calling. And please don’t feel that my words are only for the far right because those on the extreme left are just as guilty. No matter what perspective you may be coming from, deceitful and mean behavior is never acceptable for those that name Christ as their Lord.

The trouble with some of us Christians is that we think we have the corner on the market of truth when it comes to faith and, therefore, we know everything about all things. Fortunately or unfortunately (depending on how you look at it), this is not the case. We are prone to the same kind of unfair judgments, biases and prejudices as anybody else. My hope is that we are each growing in our relationship with God to the point that we listen more to what He has to say than what Rush Limbaugh or Keith Olbermann tells us to think.

God’s world is much bigger than our own. While I’m pretty sure that He cares about the U.S. election, He also is concerned with who runs other countries as well. I doubt He is in heaven right now wringing His hands over who gets elected. His plan has been in motion for thousands of years and though He does invite us to make a difference in our world, He is ultimately the King of all. And a vote for King Jesus is one that I’ll cast every year.

How Well Do You Know Your Presidents?

Did you know that 42 men have served as President of the United States of America? You may have known that, but how many of them do you think you can name? Well, now here's your chance.

MentalFloss.com has this quiz in which you have eight minutes to see how many of the U.S. Presidents you know by name.

I'm a bit of a U.S. history and presidential buff , so I was actually able to name 39 of the 42. Why don't you take a few minutes to take the quiz and let me know how well you did. Good luck!

After you have taken the quiz you can learn about the answers to the statements below at Presidental Fun Facts:

• 9 Presidents never went to college and Harvard has the most alum, 5, to serve in office.
• The most common religious affiliation is Episcopalian.
• The ethnic background of all Presidents is limited to the following heritages: Dutch, English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh, Swiss or German.
• Only one President was never married and only one was divorced.
• Eight Presidents died while in office and another six had assassination attempts on their lives.
• Fourteen Presidents served as Vice-Presidents prior to becoming top dog.