Today is Saturday, November 2nd. I got up, made my protein smoothie, and got my tea ready. I read my Bible. I prayed. Put the final touches on my notes for our sisterhood worship night tonight and made my list for the grocery store.
Then I thought about the elections coming up on Tuesday, and my stomach turned just a little bit….or a lot. If only those sick-to-your-stomach nervous butterflies burned calories. Oh well. What is going to happen? I prayed again. And then a little bit more.
Lord, help it.
Finally…sweet peace. It is well with my soul.
It’s easy to get caught up in all the drama, divisiveness, fear, and panic that are suffocating our nation right now. To only focus on what the news outlets are saying. It’s easy to get caught up in scrolling through social media and find yourself lost in the minutia of what “they” are telling us is absolute truth.
Except is it? Let’s face it. There are three sides to every story – his, hers, and the truth somewhere in between.
It’s easy to get tangled up in the mess and lose our peace and joy and hope. Hope is precious and we can’t afford to lose it. But from the looks of everyone’s Facebook statuses, there is not much left to be found!
Tuesday is going to come. People will vote. The polls will close at 7:00 pm, and then what?
What happens Wednesday?
The United States will probably not implode. And likely no one will actually move to Canada.
Wednesday morning will come. I’ll get up, make my protein shake, and and get my tea ready. I’ll read my Bible and pray. The sun will come up. Kids will go to school. Babies will be born. People will die. Laundry. Work. Errands. Sunset. Life will go on.
And we will trust God with the outcome. He has a plan.
Some things will remain untouched by the election results. But pieces of life will change. Instead of praying for the elections, I’ll pray for the new President-elect. We’ll have to adapt. Tweak. Make adjustments.
But let’s keep our eyes on the full picture. God is building a kingdom, and His plan is bigger than any election. His plan is greater than any one person or leader or party or nation. And His plans will triumph.
What will happen Wednesday? I will pray for our nation. I will probably pray for revival because morality is more effective lived than legislated. It’s an inside job.
What happens Wednesday? I continue to work for the kingdom. I continue to work for the prosperity of the nation in which God has placed me. I continue to pray for the will and the plans of God to prosper. And I continue to pray for revival. Because changing people’s hearts matters more than what happens in the election.
And this…..this will always be truth.
Upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it. (Matthew 16:18b)
Let that truth saturate your entire being, and let peace wash over you like a wave. It is well with my soul. You are going to be okay. Not because of whoever gets voted into office. But because our God is greater and He is with us. And because He is Lord.
There is nothing that will happen on Tuesday that we, the church, need to fear. Why? Because we confidently trust the Lord to care for us.
So what is going to happen Wednesday? God is still going to be God. Jesus is still going to be Lord. We are still going to have a work to do for the kingdom. So let’s not get distracted by divisiveness. Our parents are still going to be our parents. Our kids are still going to be our kids. Our co-workers and church family will still be in our lives.
Don’t yield to the divisive spirit in our nation today trying to say that if you don’t agree with someone in politics you can have nothing to do with them. That is so anti Christ. It’s opposite of what Jesus said and what Jesus did. There is more to life than politics. Stick with love and find common ground.
What’s going to happen Wednesday? You are going to get up. You’re going to go through your morning routine. Life will still go on. God will still be God. Jesus will still be Lord. And He will always be with us. Amen?