This election season has been brutal. No matter who you vote for, or if you don’t even vote at all, I’m pretty certain that no one will be completely satisfied with their vote. And no one will be completely satisfied with the results of this election.
I’ve read a lot of doomsday sounding posts. I’ve listened to messages imploring people to vote a certain way in order to save ourselves, our freedoms, and our land from the wrath of God. Please rest assured that I don’t believe any of that nonsense.
I believe that God is sovereign.
I believe that God already knows who will win the election, He has known all along, and He is not shaken or worried.
I believe that God’s unconditional, unending, unchanging love for His people has not and will not change.
I believe that the United States of America is NOT the United State of God’s people and therefore, I’m not really concerned if the results of this election bring our nation closer or further from doing God’s will because the United States of America is NOT the Kingdom of God. Our nation is not God’s chosen land, God’s chosen people, and is not responsible for fulfilling the great commission. That is up to the people of God, living in this nation and in every other part of the world. (Philippians 3:20 – But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ.)
As a member of the Kingdom of God living in the United States of America, it is my responsibility to individually, and in partnership with the other members of God’s kingdom, spread the Good News where I live. But I do not believe that this is done through the government and the electoral process, but rather, it is done within my own home, my own neighborhood, and the community and places where I live. I’m not called to “spread the gospel” through my vote but through my daily actions.
Because of these beliefs, I feel that there are certain things that we, as Christians, should be doing in this upcoming post-election season, no matter the outcome.
Pray
It often feels helpless to be living in our world today. This entire election season it has felt like the exact thing that the majority didn’t want to happen, has happened, over and over again. It can be scary to hear the predictions people have for our future. It can be worrisome to consider the world in which our children will grow up to inherit.
And yet, we have a direct connection to the Creator, Ruler, and King of the entire Universe. We have a promise that He hears us, He listens to us, He desires to take care of us, and He will answer our prayers. We may not always see the details of the work He is doing in and around us, but He is real, and He is listening if only we should ask.
We might remember this story from Jesus (Luke 18:1-8):
Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2 He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought.3 And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’
4 “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’”
6 And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly.
Respect Our Nation’s Leaders
No matter who wins the election, there will be someone in office somewhere, in authority over the place where you live in whom you will not agree with on some matters. We are still called to respect, honor, and even love every single person in our governmental offices. There is no exception in the Bible that gives us permission to demean, belittle, ridicule, or blatantly disrespect anyone at anytime, anywhere.
There has been an embarrassing number of times in the past 8 years in which I have seen and heard my Christian friends and family members speak disrespectfully about our current President (not to mention this year’s Presidential candidates). We may not agree with all of his (or her) policies and decisions, but respect and honor are not optional.
Respect is not something that is earned, it is a basic human right. I don’t have to agree with you to respect you. I don’t have to like you to respect you. As Christians, we are called to an even higher level. We are called to love everyone from ourselves to our friends to our family to our neighbors all the way down to our most atrocious enemies. This includes the governmental authorities leading our cities and our country.
Before you speak, remember to speak only with words of respect. Before you share that Facebook post, remember only to share that which spreads love.
1 Peter 2: 13-17 (emphasis added)
13 For the Lord’s sake, submit to all human authority—whether the king as head of state, 14 or the officials he has appointed. For the king has sent them to punish those who do wrong and to honor those who do right.
15 It is God’s will that your honorable lives should silence those ignorant people who make foolish accusations against you. 16 For you are free, yet you are God’s slaves, so don’t use your freedom as an excuse to do evil.17 Respect everyone, and love the family of believers. Fear God, and respect the king.
Trust God
As I place my vote and go to bed on election day, I choose peace. I will not buy into the lies that our future is hopeless, dark, or scary. My future is set and sealed. My life has been redeemed. My hope is in Jesus Christ. My trust is in my Creator, King, and Redeemer, and I do not have one sliver of a reason to fear for my future.
The entire world is in God’s hands. He has sovereign control. And we already know the ending of the story is that God wins. That is enough. There is not a single moment that passes through His hands unnoticed. He’s got this. He’s got me, and He’s got my children. We are steady. We are safe. We are secure in the arms of the only One who can save.
It does not matter who wins the election. It does not matter who they place in the Supreme Court. It does not matter what laws and policies they create. The only thing in all the world that matters is Jesus, and nothing in all of the world can take that away from us.
I trust Him with my vote. I trust Him with my life. I trust Him with my children. And I trust Him with our country.
Jeremiah 17:7-8
“But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord,
whose confidence is in him.
8 They will be like a tree planted by the water
that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes;
its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought
and never fails to bear fruit.”
Always Spread Love
The single most important calling we have on this earth is to be spreaders of Christ’s love. Our calling is not to call out evil, but to love. Our mission is not to right all wrongs, but to love.
The election is one big stress inducing season and day in which the leadership of our country changes, but the people remain the same. Our calling remains the same. Our purpose here on this earth does not change. So when we wake up each day after the election, no matter who sits in the Oval office, let us remember that our job is to spread love, everywhere we go.
When you wake in the morning, love yourself.
As you get your kids ready for school, love them.
As you drop off your kids, love the teachers.
When you stop in for your morning coffee, love the barista.
When you arrive at work, love on your coworkers, even the annoying ones.
As you eat your lunch, love on your server.
While you drive in your car, love the other drivers.
After you get home, love on your husband.
In anything and everything you do, love one another.
The solution for America won’t come from the President or Congress. The solution for America will only come when we the people learn the true power of unconditional love. May we remember that God does not call us to spread hate or fear, but love.
Love begins in our homes. Love begins in the way you talk to yourself, your children, and your husband. Love begins with a smile and a wave at your neighbor. Love spreads through a cup of coffee or an open door. Love begins with an encouraging card and a kind word. Love shines when we share articles of hope and peace instead of fear and hate.
1 Corinthians 13:4-8
4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
8 Love never fails.
May the God of peace be with us as we live in His love.
Christ came because God’s crazy love for us knew that there was no other way. God knew that on our own we would continue to fail and destroy ourselves. God understood that sin would always overpower us unless and until He saved us. So He chose to save us. That is the Good News. So if you believe the doomsday people telling us that God is on the verge of smiting us, remember that God already chose love. God already chose to redeem us. God already made a way.
If you believe the scary headlines that wish to tell us our country is on the brink of disaster, remember that God will never leave us or forsake us. God is with us. God is for us.
We have been saved. We have been delivered. We have been redeemed. The price has already been paid. God chose love for all who believe in Him. If you believe in God and the gift that He offers, you have no reason to fear. It is finished. His justice for you is love.
Let the world go crazy. Let the world worry and fear. Let the world try and fail. In this world we will have trouble, but He has overcome the world (John 16:33).
Philippians 1:27-28
27 Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel 28 without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you.
Keep on loving each other. Show hospitality to strangers. Remember those in prison. Remember also those being mistreated. Give honor to marriage. Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have.
Remember your leaders who taught you the word of God. Follow the example of their faith. Do not be attracted by strange new ideas. Your strength comes from God’s grace, not from rules.
Don’t forget to do good and to share with those in need. These are the sacrifices that please God. Obey your spiritual leaders, and do what they say.
Now may the God of peace, the great Shepherd of the sheep,
may he equip you with all you need for doing his will.
May he produce in you, through the power of Jesus Christ,
every good thing that is pleasing to him.
(excerpts from Hebrews 13).
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