Reflections and Prayer after a US Election

𝘖𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘢𝘳𝘦
𝘖𝘧 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘸𝘦𝘢𝘳
𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘥𝘰 𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦?

𝘖𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘥𝘰𝘮𝘴 𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘦
𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘥𝘰𝘮𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘭
𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘨𝘰 𝘰𝘯
𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯

- U2, "October"

As a Christian, today is a day of prayer and lament for me. But it would have been a day of prayer and lament if Harris had won too. Neither represents Biblical values. Neither cares about the image of God in all people - born and unborn.

My greater lament than who has won is for our nation - that the people of our country, and our political system, cannot come up with at least one electable option that is close enough to Biblical values for me to vote for them in good conscience.

This was not always true, even fairly recently. I disagreed with Barack Obama on much about public policy - including abortion and gay marriage, as well as drone strikes (if you read my posts from the time). And I disagreed with John McCain on much as well - taxes, social spending levels, and the amount of involvement the US military should have abroad. But they were "wrong within normal parameters", in the words of PJ O'Rourke. And they were both honorable men who respected each other and spoke accordingly. When a woman said at a McCain town hall she was afraid of Obama, McCain assured her that he was not someone to be feared - and he wasn't. And when McCain died, Obama gave a eulogy at his funeral. And, of course, I can't forget that, as his last major political act during Trump's 1st administration, McCain voted with his conscience to stop the Republicans from ending the Affordable Care Act.

Now those days of responsible and civil politics seem over in the US.

But people have always been sinful, and there have been dark days in American politics before - the time just before the Civil War; the Great Depression and the rise of fascism; or 1968, when MLK & RFK were assassinated.

As Christians, our call is not to align with any political party, but to speak prophetically to all. Our call is to build the structures for a new way of living - a Kingdom way - within the shell of the old.

And so, my greatest lament right now is not even for our country, but for Christ's Church - the Church for which He prayed that they would be one even as He and His Father are one, that the world may know that He sent them (cf. John 17:21-23)

I go to a church that has people from all over the world and from different ethnicities - people from different socioeconomic classes, people with different native languages and life experiences. And this is what Christ called His Church to be - from Day 1 at Pentecost (cf. Acts 2:1-12; Acts 2:42-47) to the Last Day in Revelation (Rev. 7:9). For He called us to make disciples of "all nations" (cf. Matt. 28:19-20).

And going to a church like this has been a blessing to me, humbling and eye-opening. We are not perfect by any means, nor are we always united, but we are trying our best to listen to each other, to learn from each other, and, most importantly, to love each other.

But, on the whole, Sunday morning is still "the most segregated hour in America", just as it was when Dr. King spoke in the late 60's. In some ways - some political ways - his dream has been realized in the US. But in the deepest way, the way of the heart and the spirit, it has not.

And until the 21st century American Church can overcome its own divisions - just as the 1st century Church overcome the "dividing wall of separation" between Jew and Gentile (Eph. 2:14) - I see no hope for political tensions in the US becoming less. But we know also as Christians, regardless of what happens to the US - even if "kingdoms fall" (cf. Matt. 24:4-8), we know that He who was faithful to begin a good work in the Church, will be faithful to complete it (cf. Phil. 1:6 - note that the "you" is plural).

Until the day that Christ returns, we are called not to lose heart (cf. 1 Cor. 15:58), not to "become weary in well-doing" (Gal. 6:9), and always to "keep our lamps burning" (cf. Matt. 25:1-13) as we do the works of our Master (cf. Matt. 25:31-46). For even if people kill us thinking they do God a service (John 16:2), or even if we only give another a cup of water in Christ's name, we shall not lose our reward (Matt. 10:42).

𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘢! 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘰, 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦, 𝘓𝘰𝘳𝘥 𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘴 (Rev. 22:20)! 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘒𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘥𝘰𝘮 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦. 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘰𝘯 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯 (Matt. 6:10). 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘯.