Suck it Up!

But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.

Joshua 24:15

Thanks be to God the election is over!

I have a confession to make. I hate politics. The Lord wired me as a policy wonk and though I try to pretend to care about politics, it is really only a means to policy implementation for me. Some people in this realm crave the crowds and enthusiasm of a political campaign and are bored by the legislation and policy discussions. Give me a stack of legislation to read and access to the legislative reference library and I am as happy as a basset hound chewing on a pig’s ear.

Having been the candidate in two campaigns myself, my response to the election this past Tuesday was the same as to my own – Thank God that’s over! In one of those elections I won the seat I was running for. Circumstances eventually made me regret the win on some days. In the other election I lost the seat I was running for. Circumstances soon made me rejoice the loss on most days.

So, how do I respond to the election of a candidate with whom I disagree on just about every level of every fundamental policy near and dear to my heart? After giving thanks that the process is over, the answer for Christians is easy. We are to pray for our leaders so that we may live a peaceable life (1Tim: 2:2).

My prayer before the election was that the Lord would have mercy on us as a nation. God always answers prayers. There is the “yes” answer where I see exactly what I asked for. The “no” answer where I see my will was not lined up with God’s will. And then, there is the “bet you didn’t know that what you asked for would look like this” answer.

I have the distinct impression I have received the last type of response. But it did not come as a complete surprise. Two weeks before the election the Lord prompted me to read Micah. As I wrote in my journal that day, “As I read through the book there was much on judgment and destruction and little on hope and mercy. It is the prophecy of a nation getting EXACTLY what it deserves for its sins.” But then the lord showed me a scripture to meditate over:

“But as for me, I will look to the Lord, I will wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me. Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me. I will bear the indignation of the Lord because I have sinned against him, until he pleads my call and executes justice for me. He will bring me forth to the light; I shall behold deliverance.”

Our nation is suffering the consequences of its actions. Our core issues continue to be spiritual, not political. We should be on our faces before the Lord, regardless of who sits in the Oval Office.

So, suck it up. If you are grieving, get over it. If you are rejoicing, enjoy it in moderation. Either way, begin fervently to pray for our nation. Pray for godly wisdom and protection for our president-elect and his new administration. Pray about what you can do to help to heal the division in our nation between political parties and races. Pray the Lord will have mercy on us and deliver us.