Tag Archives: election

Chloe

Dear Chloe,

Someday, you will read about these events, but can I just give you my account of what took place? You will read about it in far more historical detail, I’m sure, but these are my observations, for the record.

So it came to pass that it was time for a new president. To be honest, it felt like our nation was coming apart at the seams. Depending on which side you took, we were either spiraling into the depths of complete moral decay, or we were on the brink of change that would make us better than ever. But there is no denying that we were not a united nation, by any stretch of the imagination. And since this is my accounting, I will just say that it felt like we were a country on the verge of imploding, and I knew better than to hope that a new president would change that regardless of who they were or what party they represented.  Chloe, never put your hope in a president, a political party, or any other world system. Your hope will only be unshakable when it rests firmly on God, who is never, ever shaken.

campaign-2016Anyway, it was time for a changing of the guard, and the race was on. First, who would run? The blue party held no surprise, nor was it even a contest. But the red party, oh my. Out of the pack of twelve shiny choices, emerged the “least likely to ever be nominated for President”. And that’s when everything started shaking, Chloe. That’s when this race for the White House went from an event in history to a historical event.

Democrats were horrified then humored, confident that this thing was now in the bag. Republicans seemed to be somewhat dumbfounded in a ‘what just happened?‘ kind of way, but finally said ‘we meant to do that‘ to the watching world, and the dogfight race was on.

Oh, Chloe, this was a grievous, vicious time, the likes of which I personally had not witnessed in my lifetime. From both sides, the character assassinations were in big, bold headlining script, while digging-at-nightthe issues were sent to the small print area. And the country took their cues and jumped in, holding their own excavations, and the deeper they dug, the more sins they found. But that isn’t the saddest part. The world’s actions are not what grieved me so deeply.

It’s the Church, Chloe. It’s how we responded that broke my heart. It’s the picture of the people of God giving way to headlines, to all of the ‘what if’s’. Giving way to fear. Frantically turning to human reasoning, to our own wisdom. It’s the sound of brothers and sisters name calling and belittling one another. Pointing fingers. Using words like “what kind of Christian…” which is a polite way of calling into question someone’s sincere faith in Jesus. Judgment and anger and fear were all over the face of the Bride, Chloe, and that frightened me far more than either candidate did.

And I just kept thinking, what if this election isn’t really about either of the candidates? What if God is doing something that seems inconceivable to us? What if God has not entrusted the nations to humanity, but has retained His sovereignty, His right to outvote us? What if we, His Church, asked Him who to vote for, and then simply obeyed, regardless of what we thought about His choice?

What if His ways really are higher than ours? What if His thoughts aren’t our thoughts at all?

And this…both sobering and comforting…what if God isn’t using these times and these events to change a nation, but to change the Church so that the nation can change? What if we are what this election is all about?

What if judgment really does start in the house of God?

Here’s what I want to leave you with, Chloe. Hope. Hope and even joy. Because we are the Church. His chosen vessel to light up the world. His beloved to whom He is forever committed. His faithfulness is for us. We are His people and we have been lavished with His love and His grace, set apart for Him, to be holy and blameless in His sight. We are cared for, provided for and fought for by our mighty God and loving Father. We are His hands and feet, His ambassadors to a dying world. We know Him and are known by Him. We are the joy set before Him as He gave His life on the cross. We are His body, and we have been given everything we need for life and godliness (regardless of who is president). We have every reason to hope, to rejoice, to trust, because we belong to and serve the Creator and Ruler of every nation, including this one. We, you, have nothing to fear.

Chloe, you will live with the future fallout of this election, no matter which way it goes. But know this, God never let go. He never turned away and left us to our own devices, our own ability to choose a leader. He is far too faithful for that. The person who became the 45th president was by God’s choosing. If I don’t believe that, then I cannot believe that He is, as He claims, the sovereign ruler of the nations. But the most important lesson I hope you take from this time in history is this…

The throne of God is in Heaven, not the White House. And He will never give it up. 

…and he said, “O LORD, the God of our fathers, are You not God in the heavens? And are You not ruler over all the kingdoms of the nations? Power and might are in Your hand so that no one can stand against You.

~ 2Chronicles 20:6

*Chloe is my imaginary friend from the future. It happens.

a King is coming. no vote required.

November 6, 2012. The candidates will once again line up and let this country’s citizens choose their leader, and the great machine called democracy will roar to life at voting booths everywhere.

At no time in my life has the political arena been more prominent to me than these past few years. The election of President Obama, if it did nothing else, stirred people’s indignation like no other in my memory. And while I have stayed blissfully ignorant of most political issues, I often found myself joining in the fiery frenzy of the great Republican outcry, but all the while it felt like I was shouting and shaking my fist at something that had little or nothing to do with me. I think God was whispering to me; I just needed to stop shouting so I could hear Him.  I discovered that there is something familiar in our shouting.

The Jewish people had been promised a Messiah, and they eagerly waited for Him to appear. But it turns out, their reason for wanting a Messiah was different than God’s reason for giving them one. They were looking for a political ruler, a King who would free them from tyranny, and set up His rule over Israel. He did not meet their expectations, so they turned on Him and crucified Him.

Even after His death and resurrection, we see His disciples’ inability to fully grasp what Jesus came here to do. They had embraced Him as the true Messiah, were confused at His death, and were still trying to get the picture in focus after His resurrection, when He spoke with them of the Kingdom of God. Their question shows the fuzziness of  that picture.

“So when they met together, they asked him, ‘Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?'” (Acts 1:6) 

We aren’t all that different, if you ask me. Don’t we elect our president with the hopes for restoration of America? Those in the Church ally themselves with the candidate who looks most like us, and on election day we are essentially asking the same question the disciples asked. “Lord, are You at this time going to restore America to You? (did we cast enough votes, Lord?)”

And we, including those in the Church, are outraged by those on the other side of our political alliance, who, in our minds, vote for the darkness to increase. I think our outrage is rooted in a mistaken belief that we have a right to live in a darkness-free zone because, after all, this is America (one of roughly 196 nations on the earth, and not even the one referred to as the apple of His eye…but still), and our money clearly says we trust in God.  

So, in our great indignation we rail against the government/president/mayor/grocery store manager. We can see them, so its easier than railing against the “rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” that we cannot see. Wait. Did you catch that? Rewind it. “against the powers of this dark world…”.  And there you have it. Our world, all 196 nations, is dark, and getting darker. As it turns out, it’s not the Democrats’ fault. Who knew?

We will never be able to vote darkness out of our country. We are the light of the world, and our light is to draw people out of darkness. It is to reveal not a political ruler, but a crucified Savior. Our agenda is the Kingdom of God, not the kingdom of America. By virtue of living in a democracy, we have the civic right to cast our vote for a leader, but we are not voting in the one man who can turn back the darkness. Scripture clearly tells us that darkness will increase.

“But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God…” (2Timothy 3:1-4)

But, lest we become discouraged, let us also remember that there is an end in sight. There is a King. He has made the world a promise, and He will fulfill it.

Yes, a King will come, and the light will be taken from the world.

“For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.  After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words. “ (1Thessalonians 4:16-18)

A King will come, and it will be a bad day for darkness.

 “I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True… He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean….He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written:

   KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.” (Revelation 19:11-16)

A King will come, and the darkness will be no more.

“And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.” (Revelation 20:10)

A King will come, and it will truly be finished.

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.  I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” (Revelation 21:1-4)

In the meantime, darkness does threaten. But when we read scripture, primarily Paul’s letters to the churches, we see that he wasn’t so much concerned about the darkness outside the church as he was the darkness threatening the church from within. 

There are rulers, authorities, powers of this dark world and spiritual forces of evil that target our own hearts and minds, our homes and our families, and thus, the Church. 

Does it have our full attention? Are we casting aside our own deeds of darkness, renewing our own minds, guarding what our eyes see and our tongues speak? Are we asking God to ruthlessly search our hearts and expose our own darkness?

Or are we just convinced it’s all the President’s fault, while we hope that this time we’ll vote darkness outa here and once again be right with God?