11/6/24
This year the little “I Voted” sticker they give you means “I patiently endured to the end!”
I know someone who spent 97 minutes voting yesterday. It only took me 20 minutes, but that was after two attempts! The first time I couldn’t even get into the parking lot and the second time the line, in the rain, snaked far down the block.
But we voted . . . and now it’s over!
This is probably going to be shorter than usual. When I wrote my original Pastor’s Note on Monday, I fully expected the election would drag on for several days, if not a week, and wrote accordingly.
Then I woke up this morning, checked the headlines, and realized I would need to scrap it and start all over again!
To those who woke up disappointed this morning, I have one message: Jesus is Lord.
To those who woke up relieved this morning, I have one message: Jesus is Lord.
Which, if taken seriously, should remove a lot of weight off our shoulders. Our ultimate allegiance is to the King of kings and the Lord of lords, regardless of whoever occupies the White House.
Whom we serve and who we are does not change every 4 to 8 years.
True, one political party’s vision for life in our country is going to be better than the other party's vision for life in our country. The outcome of every election will determine how much easier the poorest and most vulnerable of our society can live. As one who interacts with the poorest of the poor every week, I promise you, that matters a lot. And the outcome will affect how much we need to do to relieve the suffering of others. And we should educate ourselves and vote to the best of our understanding for whichever party best serves the interests of the disadvantaged.
But the outcome of any election doesn’t affect our mission and calling: Loving God . . . Loving others.
Nor should it affect the way we respond to the outcome of the election. Regardless of which circles I filled in yesterday at my polling place, I’m still going to live a life characterized by “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”
I’m not going to hate the winner nor the loser, nor will I hate the roughly 50% of my fellow countrymen who see things differently than I do.
The way I live my life in the shadow of any election is not going to come from CNN nor from Fox News.
I’m going to turn to God’s word for guidance, and of course, it’s going to be from Isaiah! Isaiah 26 was written when the Assyrians were marching through Israel and Judah, destroying everything in their wake. They were threatening Jerusalem and the future appeared uncertain. Isaiah looked beyond the changing circumstances and wrote:
“Those of steadfast mind you keep in peace— in peace because they trust in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for in the Lord God you have an everlasting rock.”
You might be more familiar with the King James Version, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.”
The Hebrew word for Peace is shalom, and it means peace, harmony, wholeness, completeness, prosperity, welfare and tranquility. Peace is not the absence of conflict, but it is something God gives us in the midst of conflict, something that should be at the core of every believer.
A word we don’t hear often is constancy: the quality of being unchanging or unwavering, as in purpose, love, or loyalty; firmness of mind; faithfulness. As believers, we’re not to be tossed around by the changing circumstances of life, but firm, unwavering and settled because our trust is in our “everlasting rock.”
I love the gospel song we sing during Camp Meeting Days, “Prayer of My Heart.” The 3rd verse seems especially appropriate now:
O for a deeper, richer life
With treasures stored above;
A life that soars o’er carnal strife
And nestles in God’s love.
We’re surrounded by carnal strife – our inward lives can be in tumult because of the tumult in the world around us. It doesn’t have to be that way.
Soar above it. Let the Fruit of the Spirit be seen in your life. Love God . . . love others.
Blessings,
Pastor Terry