Some comments on the rise of Donald Trump as U.S. president stand out.
The Christian Post spoke with several Christians who travelled to Washington, D.C. to join a crowd of about 800,000 people on the National Mall to witness Trump's inauguration on Friday. Many of them sounded optimistic on the new administration and what they hope to see in the next four years.
Joe Waasdorp from Maryland said he considers Trump's rise to power as miraculous. "I do think it is miraculous that God can use a man that is viewed as very secular ... to help us as Christians to be able to have a platform, to once again have our views be noticed as being important," he said, adding that he doesn't even consider himself to be "a super Trump supporter."
Joe's wife Kelly said she was "not on the Trump train" from the beginning but ended up supporting him. Asked why, she answered, "I'm hopeful [now], which I couldn't say before."
Kelly Barmoy, 51, also from Maryland and who worships at an Assemblies of God church, also said she is "full of hope."
"I have hope for the Supreme Court. I have hope for jobs, for our religious liberties. So much hope for today. The last eight years have been difficult, to say the least," she said.
Her husband Paul Barmoy, 53, agreed.
"I'm very pleased that our core values are going to be represented with this next president. Our core values have sort of fallen by the wayside," he said.
However, he said Trump cannot succeed without the support of the people.
"I think the issue in the United States is not so much who is president, but it's the people, the hearts of the people," Barmoy said.
"The country is not going to turn around until the hearts of the people turn around. So I don't think Donald Trump is the saviour of the United States. I think we're in a testing period. I'm not convinced that everything is going to be wonderful now."
Not all Christians are applauding Trump.
Chrissi Steiner, 34, a missionary also from Maryland and who just arrived from China where she spent her last four years, said Trump could spell trouble in terms of U.S. foreign policy. "I feel like he's not very knowledgeable about history, our allies versus things that could cause trouble," Steiner said.
She hopes that Trump would stop writing off-the-cuff remarks on Twitter, saying that "every word out of the president's mouth means something."
"I hope [Trump] can bring everybody together but I don't know that that's possible," she said.
