My e-newsletter this week urged my readers to get involved in this presidential election and to specifically to help Ted Cruz, whom I have endorsed for this nation's highest office. But then it occurred to me I also needed to address pastors, who can influence their people to go to the caucus and to the polls. After I sent out the newsletter, I received an email from my friend, Canon Mark Pearson, a spirit-filled Anglican priest in New Hampshire who was excited about the newsletter and told me he was getting involved in his state.

Most pastors are concerned about the spiritual condition of the nation. However, many don't believe they can help move the needle much. Be assured, you can. One thousand votes in Iowa can help make the difference for Cruz, and getting believers to go to the polls in New Hampshire and South Carolina can make a huge impact too. 

There are 310 million Americans, and of them, 129 million voted in the last presidential election. So when the general election rolls around, our individual votes rarely make a difference. (Of course, in Florida in 2000, only 537 votes made a difference for George W. Bush becoming president.)

However, my friends in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina can have a huge impact. Help me get this message to your friends in those states!

Here's why: The Iowa Caucus next Monday followed by the New Hampshire Primary eight days later and the South Carolina Primary on Feb. 20 will likely determine the nominee for the Republican Party, who I think will certainly win the election in the fall.

Our own Bob Eschliman, who writes for our Charisma Caucus, gave a very interesting analysis of the situation in Iowa, which you can read here. He predicts there will be fewer than 1,000 votes between Ted Cruz and Donald Trump. Is it possible that the readers of Charisma and this e-newsletter could provide the difference?  

We can only speculate on that. But it seems that Pentecostals and charismatics tend to be passive when it comes to politics. It's said that many of them stayed home rather than voted for a Mormon in 2008. That, along with other conservatives who stayed home for the same reason, may have been the reason Barack Obama won by only 500,000 votes in three key states.  

There is a lot to like about some of the things Donald Trump brings to the table. But it is important that we think clearly about who we're wanting to lead our country. There are a lot of things that cause questions, which Michael Brown clearly articulated in this thoughtful column.

Contrast that with Ted Cruz, who is a principled conservative, a strong believer and a fighter who will not be intimidated by those who I believe are dragging our country down.

Most of my readers do not live in these three states where the victor, I believe, will carry momentum through to the other primaries and on to the nomination. But most of us know people in those states or have social media connections there. So pastors, let's forward this e-newsletter to ministry leaders in those three states. Let's motivate them to talk to their congregations and go to the caucus in Iowa and to the polls in New Hampshire and South Carolina. It's said many of us have around 300 contacts on our cellphones. Can we encourage others to see the seriousness of getting involved and to believe we can make a real difference?

This is my way of trying to create a groundswell of support—overseen by the political pundits or the secular media—of quiet, God-fearing, Spirit-filled Christians who want to give the momentum to a man like Ted Cruz. He is so close to winning the Iowa Caucus. Polls show he won't win in New Hampshire, but it is predicted he will finish second or third. He can then head into South Carolina and win, which would give him the momentum he will need to earn the Republication nomination.  

I could be wrong. The political scenario could play out very differently. Ministry Today is a spiritual magazine, not a political magazine. Although we comment on the political process, never before have we endorsed a candidate in the primaries or tried to motivate our readers to go to polls like this. But I believe our readers are concerned about the direction of our nation. I believe this a moment in which we can make a real difference.  

We probably cannot swing the general election, but I think that things are so close in Iowa that we can give Ted Cruz the momentum he needs. I make this point in an earlier Strang Report. I also invite you to listen to my four-part Strang Report exclusive interview with Ted Cruz on the Charisma Podcast Network. Here are parts 1, 2, 3 and 4 of that interview.

Will you take a few moments to forward this e-newsletter to your friends in the ministry or put it on social media? You may connect with someone who gets really motivated and connects his or her network. We never know what can be the tipping point. It might be you.

Let's do what we can to put a principled conservative with a strong biblical worldview into the nation's highest office.

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Dr. Mark Rutland's

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