Pastor Dave Aucoin
By Fred Comella
These are truly unprecedented times. Comparatively speaking and for the purposes of this article, the 60’s were a turbulent era to be sure. But in the end there was actually debate, a baseline of freedom and the wisdom of a battle-hardened “Greatest generation” to guide us. Our basic value set was still a constant. And no matter how tumultuous it got, we managed to somehow come back together and heal the nation.
9/11 tested us once again and we saw folks around the country join one another in prayer to God to heal and guide us. It’s striking how far we seem to have drifted from that period of unity barely 17 years ago.
The history of this great republic is not ancient my friends, therefore we have no real excuses for the absolute vitriol, ignorance and outright anger and hate we’re seeing today. It’s like nothing I can remember. Human kind appear to have forgotten the God that made them in favor of the fleeting vanity and perceived power of this short life He grants us.
From the shooting down of a civilian airliner packed with families high above the eastern Ukraine, to the use of poison gas on innocent men, women and children in Syria, to Christian martyrs beheaded and burned alive by twisted criminal monsters masquerading as men of faith. Here at home where we see misguided young people, absent parents who embrace faith and traditional family, who aren’t raised to see the value of the life He breaths into us, taking that life in the most violent and heinous ways, it’s hard to imagine how our Lord must feel as He looks on at what we’ve done with the free will He’s given us. And then we need only turn on the television to witness an endless barrage of often violent confrontation in place of legitimate debate and bipartisanship, as well as a so-called free press expending every available moment of airtime, eviscerating a 72-year-old billionaire who passed on a cushy retirement to try and resurrect our nation out of the ashes left to him by a Godless predecessor. I think it’s safe to say we are a wounded people and country…
Now I could write 20 pages of examples for you to peruse and ponder, but I’ve done that many times. And I fear you, like myself, are desperately seeking (and praying for) answers, not more lists… Moreover, my editor would not approve of me hijacking this useful ministry to state and restate the obvious. No Christian stalwarts, we need solutions. But what do those solutions look like?
You may have read some of my political rants outside of “The GNT”. And you may have agreed or disagreed. But what has been the one constant? For me, it’s been my Savior and all the things that have come into my life, as a result of “Him” coming into my life. From the many missionaries I’ve interviewed to the dozens of Christian events I’ve been to and written about, as well as all of the very special people who’ve helped me along this journey to a new life in Christ, I’ve come to understand the one truth in all of it, >>>> wait for it,>>>> You guessed it. “JESUS”! Nothing short of a return to our Judeo-Christian value set will suffice. No solution, be it political or personal will save us from ourselves as only He can. And I submit to all of you today, that everything else absent Christ at the center is simply an exercise in futility!
How does this translate into the big picture? It starts in the home with God, family values and a moral outlook that includes accountability on every level. But what’s next? What else? Finally, it hit me like a freight train. Our very system of government is corrupted by all the Bible warns us of. Scripturally speaking, we are witnessing prophecy and many don’t even see it or simply choose to ignore it. This government of, by and for the people is nothing of the sort any longer and has been usurped by greedy, immoral evil people seeking to run God out of the building.
To change this, we absolutely must begin by electing moral/Christian patriots to the halls of government. Task them with resetting the local/national outlook and moral compass, ridding our government of graft and “the deep state” if you will. And finally passing that torch of “re-birth” along to the next person willing to serve, via the term limits which are the only way to keep criminal ideologues from making politics their career. I’m not talking about re-inventing our government or country, as some folks would have you believe. I’m simply saying there is a true and decent history to The United States. And that history begins with the “Ten Commandments” as the model for the Mayflower Compact, as well as our founding documents, from the state Constitutions and charters, to the Declaration and Constitution. Read them, and the papers and correspondence of the men who penned them and you will understand. The further we stray from that indisputable fact my friends, the worse it will get for America.
Without rehashing my journey to the Lord, let me just say that there were two significant folks in my life who made it all happen for me. (Well, besides you know Who). My lovely wife Janie and my Pastor. From the first time I heard Pastor Dave Aucoin speak, I knew he was a man of God who valued his faith greatly. I could hear the conviction in his voice and knowledge in his sermons like I hadn’t in all my days as a believer. And when I first sat before the platform at Abundant Life Assembly of God Church in Swansea MA and listened to Dave preach, I knew something in my life was going to change.
So, when he called on me recently to explain he was considering a run at a local Representative seat in his home town of East Providence, Rhode Island, I was admittedly less surprised than I believe he was, that he was actually going to do it.
Pastor Dave Aucoin with his wife Cindy
PD as I like to call him, is prior military (Army), something I picked up on very quickly when we met. He’s an unassuming man of faith who walks the walk and who is generally affected by the lives of those he pastors. He is happy when they’re happy and conflicted when they’re ill or compromised. He rejoices in their families and cares deeply about his community and country, a true common-sense man of God who recognizes the power of his maker and the gift of salvation He brings. He and wife Cindy have one daughter and three grandchildren, and he, like myself, cares deeply about the nation and world they live in and will inherit.
PD follows local and world events closely as I do and is deeply troubled by our current posture/culture in the 21st Century as they relate to our Biblical foundations here in the U.S. He also agrees that while the change we seek starts within us, electing Godly men to the halls of government will only augment and enhance every effort to revisit what made our nation exceptional. Well it seems God may have something for Dave to do along these lines, as last month a local Christian ministry leader sent out an email appeal which in essence said: “There are 30+ candidates in RI running unopposed and most are liberal. Please ask God if he is calling you to serve him in this way.”
I spoke to PD recently and we discussed the email he’d received. Dave told me he wrote down the request in his prayer journal and prayed mightily about how wonderful it would be if someone would respond. As he prayed, PD began to think about how he has been telling people for years now, that the only way we’re going to see Rhode Island, and the country for that matter, return to the common sense moral and ethical values that made us unique in the world, is for Christians and Conservatives to run for elected office and (serve) at the State House and beyond. Dave feels strongly that a quote from Falwell applies here in the “Ocean State”, “I have held that there is a “Moral Majority” in our state that needs to be awakened”. He also believes that new leadership in state and local government, with the help of the church, unified for the greater good, can bring about the change we so sorely need. Absent that change, Dave believes there are darker days ahead for our RI families spiritually, economically and socially and I agree…
Pastor Dave and I have talked often about how some would perceive a lack of “political experience” as a liability for any newcomer to the snake pit that is “Smith Hill”. I’ve told him that I felt the best retort to that kind of assertion, would be to suggest that if “political experience” is what’s brought us to these most difficult and undesirable times, then maybe we need a little less “political experience” and allot more simple common sense.
Dave continued that after much reflection and “a whole lotta prayer”, he kept coming back to what he’d been telling “other folks” for so long, and that the arrow was suddenly pointing right at him. Maybe God is pushing me to that which I speak of. This all culminated for Dave in late June when he was moved to action. And now he will be running for the Senate seat in District 32, representing Barrington and parts of Bristol and Riverside (East Providence).
Dave wrote to me recently: “Since beginning this endeavor I’ve found that God is calling many to be more involved both at the state and local level. But this should come as no surprise. God answers prayer and this past year many churches have committed to round the clock prayer for revival in RI through a movement called ‘Together We Pray.’ (togetheradvancethegospel.com). Only God knows what will happen this November and we would do well to remember that he certainly has not promised to take away all of our problems by way of our government. But it’s clear he’s answering specific prayer along these lines for our state. So, let’s keep it up. The future of the United States hinges on the conditional promise of (2 Chronicles 7:14). And God is always true to his Word”! –
“If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”
Amen to that PD!
Pastor Dave Aucoin
I would add here that PD has been instrumental in calming my political anger and frustration over the last few years, Biblically educating me and convincing me that no matter our efforts, ultimately He is on the Thrown and is the finally arbiter. He’s also told me that this does not mean we should stand by and allow the evil one to rampage “unopposed”, and that we are all called to serve. I’ve watched my pastor wade into the political maelstrom during the controversial “Bathroom Bill” debate in Massachusetts recently. When some turned a blind eye choosing neutrality to the spotlight of controversy, he stood fast with Christ and was both humbled and reassured in the outcome. Since that time PD has remained active with the MA Family Institute, as well as efforts to adopt and begin a similar outreach here in RI. I suspect these efforts were God’s way of preparing Dave for the trials to come as he becomes a candidate and hopefully a State Representative.
For my part, I will try my best to help my friend realize God’s will for him, as I believe strongly that his course of action is our last best hope at the governmental level. He takes this action, to help turn the tide against all that is ailing us as a people, a state and a nation today, armed only with common sense and the Biblical principles that set us apart from all the rest. In the end though and no matter the outcome, let the notion that a humble Pastor was prepared to step into the pit with the adders, be a light of hope to you. If you are so inclined to support his efforts, please do so.
You can email Pastor Dave Aucoin at daucoin1952@gmail.com or write to Abundant Life Assembly of God, 135 New Meadow Rd., Swansea, MA 02777. Contact him in the office at 508-379-0780 or cell 401-419-4920.
