Tag Archives: Vote

We Wait…

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I have a good friend who started sending out a morning Scripture and missive five years ago or more. Today’s seemed to really fit for believers, so I share it with permission (bolding mine). Thanks Dwayne Russell.

“Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance,”
‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭1:13-14‬ ‭ESV‬‬
“Set your hope fully on Him!!!
There is a lot of craziness, lots disorder all around but Jesus is not moved from His position. We are still called to occupy till He comes. That day may be sooner than we think. We have to be willing to suffer as our Savior did. It may get harder before He comes, but one thing I know He is faithful and we can trust Him with our tomorrows.”

And today’s verse of the day from YouVersion seemed to be an excellent reminder considering our days and today. His blessings to you and yours!

“For the earth will be filled With the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, As the waters cover the sea.” Habakkuk 2:14

Vote! & Devote!

Good morning! As I arise at the cabin before sun up and see the breaking of dawn on the horizon, I am reminded that God is faithful — the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. It’s in Him I put my trust, and not in any man or political system.

That said, He has ordained and given us our unique political system and government for His purposes and to serve us. Today is an important day in which we get to select our leader for the next four years. Please exercise your constitutional privilege, your civic duty and VOTE!

Yesterday’s blog mentioned two things that seem to be at the forefront of this election for Christians; platform and character. Both are important, but in this election I said the platform or issues loomed much larger than character, and I spoke to the issues. They are so starkly different that any Christian should see that to vote one way is to choose secular humanism or man’s rule in the totality of life, and to vote the other way would be to choose God, His ways and His rule in our national life.

CHARACTER

But I said I would address the character issue and I will. First I will give you my short, simple version. Then quickly I will defer to an article a friend sent me yesterday by Wayne Grudem who discusses the same issue. I consider Wayne Grudem one of the best theologians and Bible scholars alive today. And he certainly hits this nail on the head, discussing the character issue in depth.

DWAYNE’S THOUGHTS

That we should be voting today between two men with low morals, according to the media and the campaign ads, says more about our country and ourselves, than it does about the candidates perhaps. So I would suggest a look inward, and upward, asking the Divine for help in righting our moral ship with His Trustworthy Compass.

But decide we must.

If one is in the business of throwing stones, both candidates loom large as targets. And their lives have been put under a media microscope, perhaps one more than the other. The critics of one point to pride and past sexual misconduct. The critics of the other point to bribes and corruption evidence, as well as someone who frequently says one thing and does another, or changes what he says about an issue depending on the audience .

I’m going to give my nod to President Trump as having the best character of the two. A man who has done what he said he would do when he ran four years ago and since he took office. Speaking the truth, and keeping your word to me are very important signs of underlying character.

And again, God is the ultimate judge of character and actions, not me, not you. We just have to look at our options and vote.

WAYNE’S THOUGHTS

Wayne Grudem’s thoughts are through, well thought out, and conveyed, typical of writers, scholars, and theologians. I’m only going to quote a few thoughts here that seem the most apropos to the issue and provide you the link. He writes (Bolding mine.):

“A candidate’s character and policies are both important to consider before voting. And I would agree that there are some character flaws so serious that they would by themselves disqualify a candidate (such as an avowed racist). But in most elections, and with most candidates, we have to choose between two rather ordinary human beings, both of whom have flaws. In that case, an evaluation of their policies becomes decisive. And that is the case in this election.”

“Here is the point at which people will make different political judgments, because human beings are extremely complex, and therefore an accurate assessment of a person’s character is difficult. It certainly should not be done quickly on the basis of small snippets of information. And complicating the task is the fact that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:20), so every human being has flaws that others can criticize.

Piper speaks of Trump’s character in entirely negative terms. Because of unbelievably hostile reporting in the mainstream press, other people can see no good character traits at all in President Trump. My assessment is different, and I think it is more balanced. I wrote this in 2016 and it still applies: 

“’He is egotistical, bombastic, and brash. He often lacks nuance in his statements. Sometimes he blurts out mistaken ideas…that he later must abandon. He insults people. He can be vindictive when people attack him…He has been married three times and claims to have been unfaithful in his marriages. These are certainly flaws, but I don’t think they are disqualifying flaws in this election.’”

“On the other hand, I think some of the accusations hurled against him are unjustified. His many years of business conduct show that he is not racist or anti-(legal) immigrant or anti-Semitic or misogynistic – I think these are unjust magnifications by a hostile press exaggerating some careless statements he has made. I think he is deeply patriotic and sincerely wants the best for the country. He has been an unusually successful problem solver in business. He has raised remarkable children. Many who have known him personally speak highly of his kindness, thoughtfulness, and generosity.”

“And now, after his nearly four years in office, I would add that he has shown remarkable courage of his convictions, faithfulness to his campaign promises, steadfastness of purpose in spite of an astoundingly hostile press, incredible energy in the performance of his job, dignity and even eloquence in many formal speeches and ceremonies at home and abroad, respect and appreciation for his wife Melania and his sons and daughters, and a wide-ranging understanding of the hundreds of different issues that every president faces. In contrast to his past life, during his term in office there is not been even a hint of any sexual impropriety. He is sometimes boastful but on a number of occasions I have seen him publicly give credit to many other people for things that have been accomplished. And I think he has shown mature and wise judgment in a variety of situations that he has faced as president.”

“With Trump, we will get good policies and character flaws, but with Biden we will get bad policies and character flaws.”

“It is easy to compare President Trump with a hypothetical “perfect” president and to conclude that he falls short, but that is not our choice. If Trump is not reelected, we will have President Biden, with an entirely different set of character flaws. The multiple allegations that Vice President Biden used his government office and influence to enrich members of his own family with millions of dollars from China, Russia, and Ukraine should be of deep concern, because using government power to enrich one’s own family is the consistent characteristic of corrupt leaders in many countries of the world.”

And lastly:

“The Trump administration has brought to prominence many leaders with exemplary lives.”

“Donald Trump is not the only person we are voting for. It is remarkable that the Trump administration has elevated so many self-professing evangelical Christians – far more than any in my lifetime – into positions of high influence in our government. They also provide role models for Americans. To vote for Trump as president is also to vote for Mike Pence as vice president, Mike Pompeo as Secretary of State, Ben Carson as Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education, Russell Vought as director of the Office of Management and Budget, and numerous others. In addition, Trump has appointed numerous deeply committed Roman Catholics to various positions, the most recent being Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court. The character of these leaders is also a role model for the nation.”

I hope you have found this discussion helpful. And that you will vote… wisely. For your own well being, as well as that of our children, and our grandchildren. America is in a moral free fall it seems, the kind that has produced collapse and judgment in the past, and this election will not fix that problem. Only the God that gave us life, and this nation birth, can do that. And He’s willing to help. But the outcome of this election will be a big step in one direction or the other. In letting Him know what we want. And showing us what we’re asking for?

May God give you wisdom, and peace, as you consider the options, and VOTE!


“Let your heart therefore be wholly devoted to the Lord our God, to walk in His statutes and to keep His commandments, as at this day.” I Kings 8:61

“Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving;”Col 4:2

“This I say for your own benefit; not to put a restraint upon you, but to promote what is appropriate and to secure undistracted devotion to the Lord.” I Cor 7:35