Pastors Edge

I have been more quiet and reflective during the last 18 months in the race for President than ever before in my lifetime. I admittedly love politics. In fact I want to recommend a book to you if you have any interest in being a truly informed voter and one who can intelligently discuss and debate the various issues facing the next President of the United States (POTUS). The book is entitled What You Should Know about Politics...But Don't by Jessamyn Conrad. It truly is as the subtitle states a "non-partisan" guide to the issues. I found the book a great read and extremely informative and will be a more intelligent voter because of it.

That said, in a matter of hours, we will have elected the next POTUS in what will be (regardless of who wins) an extremely historic event. Either the first black person will be elected POTUS or the first woman will be elected V-POTUS. Either way, to say the least we have come a long way baby, no doubt about it!

The purpose of this post is neither to persuade you to vote for one candidate nor dissuade you from voting for another candidate.  However, I will go on record as saying this without apology: it would be wrong to vote against any candidate strictly because of the color of their skin. That is blatant racism and has no place in what should be a truly color blind society.  On the other hand, it is just as racist to vote for a person strictly because of the color of their skin. That too is just as racist and is simply not a reason to vote for anyone.

That being said, today we will have elected a new president and I want to give some observations, offer some counsel, and make some suggestions that hopefully will apply to everyone. I do this in no particular order.

First, do not make the political personal. I have never seen such venomous and vitriolic disagreement over a presidential election in my lifetime. Indeed, I just read where a fight broke out in a retirement home in Florida between some senior adults over the upcoming election! (I wonder if they were members of AARP-American Association of Retired Pugilists)  Obscene gestures, profane language, murderous looks can be had in an instant if you are wearing the wrong button, or have the wrong bumper sticker, or an unpopular yard sign. 

Though I don't want to underestimate the importance of this election ( just maybe one of the two most important of my lifetime) we do need to remember that we are accountable only as to how we vote, and that the differences offered in a democracy are what make living in one so great. Be passionate, be bold, and be willing to speak your mind but do so with an allowance for others to disagree without declaring war on them.

Second, don't whine about the winner and don't laugh about the loser. Frankly, I don't know why anybody would even want the job today! Have you ever seen more difficult issues facing a POTUS both in quantity and quality than the one facing the next one? From domestic to foreign issues, we are living in perhaps the most unstable, difficult, perilous times since the beginning of WWII.  Once the American voter has spoken it is time to move on. Mercifully, the debates, ads, primaries, and campaigns are over-at least for a few weeks, and we can all move on with our lives and get back to simply governing our own lives responsibly.

Finally, pray for the next POTUS regardless of who wins. Not only will he need it but he deserves it and God demands it!  One thing I am grateful for-it is the knowledge that behind all of this is a sovereign God who is in complete control and whose Son is coming back one day not to take sides but to take over!  Looking at the headlines right now-that event can't come soon enough