LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (BP)–Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and George W. Bush have spoken on numerous occasions about faith. In each instance, Huckabee said he’s come away from the conversations with a profound appreciation for the faith of the nation’s commander-in-chief.
“One of the things that impressed me about President Bush is that when he talked about his faith to me personally … he didn’t just talk about a vague and generic relationship with God. He spoke very candidly and very specifically about his personal relationship with Jesus Christ,” Huckabee said in a recent interview.
Huckabee, 45, and Bush became acquainted while the two served as governors of neighboring states. Huckabee was re-elected to another four-year term in Arkansas last November.
Huckabee, a former Southern Baptist pastor, said he finds the candidness of the president refreshing, and remarked that Bush doesn’t treat faith lightly or as if he “has this connection with the man upstairs.”
Bush, he said, has always spoken “openly about repentance of sin and his personal commitment to, his faith in and his confidence in Jesus Christ as his Savior.”
“That’s pretty powerful when a person takes it to that personal level, rather than just some corporate level of saying, ‘Yes, I believe there is a God and I think the Bible is a great book.’
“He’s much more genuine and much deeper than that, and I think he is as authentic as anyone I’ve ever been around in terms of his faith,” Huckabee said.
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