I didn’t think this day would ever come: November 9. But it has and we should all should take a deep breath and start posting pictures of fun stuff on our Facebook pages. Please no more political memes for a while. Give it up. We need a break.
But I still am trying to get my head around my one confusion of what just happened in this Presidential election. So I am going to seek some clarity by doing what I do best: Think out loud on this laptop.
Please know that my words are not intended to incite anger and they are not sour grapes. These are my personal reflections this morning of where I hope we all can go from here as Christian first and Americans second (important distinction).
My candidate did not win. I did my part. I voted. 48% of the American people elected Donald J. Trump to be the 45th President of the United States; he won by a margin of 51 electoral votes but also lost the overall popular vote. This was a stunning but not a landslide victory. It was not an overwhelming mandate from the American people. Sadly the results of this election still indicate that we are a deeply divided nation. We have work to do.
This is why Mr. Trump’s task in the days ahead is going to be challenging at best for him. Like his predecessor nearly half the country woke up November 9, 2015 an angry and disappointed electorate. So the next four years are going to be tough for Mr. Trump—and for all of us.
But do not fear. There is hope.
A good friend of mine reminded me this morning that sometimes the “job makes the man.” We all can hope that this will be the case and for this reason I am offering my initial and conditional support to the new President elect (as I did for Mr. Obama and was proud to do so).
Just as I prayed for Mr. Obama I will pray for Mr. Trump. I will pray for the wisdom he is going to need for him to unite this country and to assuage a lot of the anger many are feeling today; and those who are feeling that anger need a kind hand of outreach from those who are basking in Mr. Trump’s victory. So please spare us the “jail Hillary” suggestions and be humble in victory. That would be a good start.
Now with all that said I would like to make some concluding comments:
First, I do hope that those who did not vote for Mr. Trump (myself included) will be kinder towards him than many have been towards Mr. Obama these past eight years. I remember a friend telling me shortly after Mr. Obama was elected to his second term: “He is not my President!” Let's give Mr. Trump the opportunity that he is indeed the President for all America before we pass such quick judgment.
Second, respect the office of the President. As a former military officer I have never publicly disrespected a sitting President (not even in social media). As a retired military officer I will continue to uphold that tradition that was instilled in me many years ago upon entering the military. I will more than likely disagree with many things Mr. trump will do, but he is going to be President of the United States of America and as such deserves my conditional respect.
Third and this is perhaps this is the most important thing I can say: I must from time to time remind myself that I live under the ultimate authority of the One in Whom I place all my trust, including my full unconditional allegiance.
With that said do I believe God had an actual preference in this election? I hardly feel comfortable making such a claim.
If you believe that God actually does manipulate elections in order to elect anyone to the office of President then yes the system is indeed rigged.
For all those on the losing side this morning: God did not rig the system against us. We humans did this to ourselves without any of his help. So please, be careful whom you blame for the results of this election, it is not God.
Yes there may be a part in our nation’s politics for religion but I contend that it should be minimal at best. Let’s not pollute our faith with the nastiness of our political campaigns; faith is too precious and valuable to do such a thing.
Look, how does anyone know with certainty what God wanted us to do in the voting booth. Well, we don’t know! So let’s not rub salt into the wound of those who are on the losing side this morning by suggesting God was not on their side.
To make the claim that God preferred one candidate to another, with the certainty some already have, borders on idolatry and reflects an Old Testament concept of God (a concept that Jesus transformed into a new reality):
"My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place."
Take comfort in knowing that all things pass in due time, that the world is not collapsing around us this morning (although the stock market isn’t looking good), and that our true citizenship is in another kingdom whose origin is not of human political design.
Peace be with you all!
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