Faith Lessons From The Life Of Jimmy Carter

Faith Lessons From The Life Of Jimmy Carter December 31, 2024

White-haired Jimmy Carter seated at table and smiling wearing a jacket and red tie
Jimmy Carter, the 30th president of the United States [Image from Wikimedia Commons]
While former President Jimmy Carter didn’t live to see the beginning of 2025, he did reach the age of 100. He made a profound impact on the world around him, one that continued  after his departure from the White House through the decades prior to his death. The secret to Carter’s success, his deep and abiding faith, was really no secret at all. His public life allowed Jimmy Carter to display and speak about his faith on a worldwide stage. His legacy? Faith lessons from the life of Jimmy Carter.

The Life Of Jimmy Carter

Jimmy Carter’s life both began and ended in Plains, Georgia. Born October 1, 1924, Jimmy grew up in that small southwestern Georgia whose population stood at a mere 573 in 2020. But the future president moved out into the big wide world graduating from the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland in 1946. Carter served seven years as a naval officer, five in the submarine service, before returning home to assume the family peanut farm operations after his father’s death.

View from across railroad tracks toward downtown Plains, Georgia building
The life of Jimmy Carter began and ended in the small town of Plains, Georgia [Image from Wikimedia Commons]
Already successful in the peanut business, Carter decided to dip his toe into political waters. He served four years as the Georgia State Senate and later four years as the governor of Georgia. As a dark-horse candidate, Carter opposed the incumbent Gerald Ford for president in the 1976 election. His narrow win enabled him to assume the role as the 39th president of the US. During his presidency, Carter worked with Egypt and Israel to end the state of war between them, a result accomplished via the Camp David Accords. However, he held the office of president for one term only.

Post-Presidential Life

Jimmy Carter’s activities after leaving the White House secured his place in the hearts and minds of his fellow Americans. He worked tirelessly with diplomatic and humanitarian missions around the world, receiving the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts while in office and afterwards. Even into his nineties, Carter physically worked on Habitat For Humanity construction projects for the poor. Despite his globe-trotting, Carter continued to teach Sunday School at his small Southern Baptist home church in Plains.

2002 Nobel Peace Prize medal, a bronze piece featuring a man's head and writing encircling the medal
Carter received the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize [Image from Wikimedia Commons]

The Faith Life of Jimmy Carter

While Jimmy Carter’s accomplishments merit appreciation, it is the man who he was that deserves the attention. He unabashedly admitted to his strong faith as a born again Christian before, during, and after his presidency. While the character of many politicians today is questionable, no such attack on Jimmy Carter could be made. He not only proclaimed his faith, but he lived it out every day. The former president provides a great example of a true man of faith and well as offering several faith lessons to fellow believers.

Faith Lesson #1 – Nothing But The Truth

Jesus referred to Himself as the way, the truth, and the life in John 14:6. As a follower of Christ, Jimmy Carter aspired to always speak the truth, and he voiced this goal publicly. During one campaign speech, he famously promised, “I’m Jimmy Carter and I’m running for president. I will never lie to you.”

Faith Lesson #2 – Read Your Bible Daily

Carter recognized the importance of  staying grounded in God’s Word.  Accordingly, he read the Bible on a daily basis. He noted in an interview that he and his wife, Rosalyn, embraced the tradition of reading the Bible every night as the last thing they did prior to bed. “One night she reads aloud and then the next night I read aloud. Then we have discussions about what we read to each other,” he explained. And the couple “never missed a night.”

Faith Lesson #3 – Choose The Right Life Partner

In 2 Corinthians 6:14, Paul told believers not to be yoked together with unbelievers. Jimmy Carter took this admonition to heart when he wed the love of his life, Rosalyn. in 1946. He called the union “the most important thing in my life.” Also a strong believer, Rosalyn supported her husband in all his endeavors, literally standing by his side assisting with construction on houses for Habitat For Humanity. Further, Rosalyn, joined with Jimmy in strengthening their faith through daily Bible reading and discussing the Scripture. This partnership offers a vivid example of iron sharpening iron as Proverbs 27:17 says.

By putting God in the center of their relationship, the Carters’ marriage was strong and long-lasting. Their 77-year union made them the longest married US presidential couple. Indeed, their threefold strand did not break, bringing to mind the advice in Ecclesiastes 4:12.

View from behind Pres. Carter and his wife kissing on the airport tarmac in front of a crowd
An important part of the faith life of Jimmy Carter was his supportive wife, Rosalyn [Image from Wikimedia Commons]

Faith Lesson #4 – Confess Your Sins

Although a great man, Jimmy remained human. That meant he was not perfect and sinned. He admitted to falling short. Carter’s remarks caused a stir when he confessed in a Playboy interview during his presidential campaign the he had “committed adultery in [his] heart many times.” But he received God’s forgiveness, spoke the truth about his failures, and did not portray himself as holier than thou.

Faith Lesson #5 – Go Into All The World

Wherever Jimmy Carter found himself, he spoke about his faith. As a midshipman at the US Naval Academy, he taught Bible lessons, a practice he continued even while serving as president  and while serving on submarines as a naval officer. Running for president and acting as US president simply gave Carter a wider platform to express his beliefs. After leaving the White House, he literally went into all the world as Jesus directed His followers in Mark 16: 15 directs to demonstrate God’s love for his fellow man in numerous humanitarian and diplomatic missions.

Jimmy Carter sitting at his desk in the Oval Office
The 39th US President offered faith lessons during his life, including his time in the White House [Image from Wikimedia Commons]

Faith Lessons From The Life Of Jimmy Carter

Criticism leveled at Jimmy Carter’s record as president did not flow to the man himself. Carter, a man of integrity and strong faith, lived out his faith on a daily basis wherever he was whether that be on a submarine, on the campaign trail, in the White House, or on a construction project for Habitat For Humanity. For believers, his best legacy is the faith lessons from the life of Jimmy Carter.

 

 

About Alice H Murray
After 35 years as a Florida adoption attorney, Alice H. Murray now pursues a different path as Operations Manager for End Game Press. With a passion for writing, she is constantly creating with words. Her work includes contributions to several Short And Sweet books, The Upper Room, Chicken Soup For The Soul, Abba’s Lessons (from CrossRiver Media), and the Northwest Florida Literary Review. Alice is a regular contributor to GO!, a quarterly Christian magazine in the Florida Panhandle, and she has three devotions a month published online by Dynamic Women in Missions. Her devotions have also appeared in compilation devotionals such as Ordinary People Extraordinary God (July 2023) and Guideposts’ Pray A Word A Day, Vol. 2 (June 2023) and pray a word for Hope (September 2023). Alice’s first book, The Secret of Chimneys, an annotated Agatha Christie mystery, was released in April 2023. She has an adoption devotional scheduled for publication in October 2025. On a weekly basis, Alice posts on her blog about current events with a humorous point of view at aliceinwonderingland.wordpress.com. You can read more about the author here.

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