Brie Gowen

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Christianity’s Only Hope for the Presidential Election

October 27, 2020 by brieann.rn@gmail.com

If there was one thing we could all agree about this year, it would be the monumental amount of disagreement this year.

What’s the only thing that has seemed certain this year? The abundant amount of uncertainty this year.

Indeed, this year has rivaled most in my short, forty-three on earth, and a part of me has desired to hide away in a storm shelter, waiting for the harsh winds of this season to pass. Whether you have experienced fear for your life in the face of a novel virus, or fear that your government is feeding you untruths about a virus, the fact is you’ve experienced fear. It’s easy to forget that fear often manifests in an apparently righteous anger, or in a quest to reveal the truth. Whether we’re enormously offended or staunchly standing for truth, it’s that thread of uncertainty for the future that drives the conversation. This year has rocked everyone’s foundation of security, and it’s ok to admit that. No matter how our response has manifested.

This has been more than just a year of isolation, though. It’s also been a season of unveiling. We’ve seen injustice come to light, but we’ve also seen the worst of humanity bubble to the surface. It seems that fear for the ugliness within ourselves can manifest in denial that a problem even exists. I think that’s been the hardest part of this year for me. Watching the compassion evaporate, and the selfishness multiply. Of note, I don’t exclude myself from this particular response to 2020. I certainly have dropped my basket of spiritual fruit multiple times this year.

I think the biggest problem this year, though, has truly boiled down to how we see, and how we hear. Do you remember the words of Jesus?

Matthew 13:13 This is why I speak to them in parables: “Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. 14 In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: “ ‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. 15 For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’

For a large part, as Christians we see and we hear, but only in part. Mostly what we see is of this world, and in actuality it should be the opposite. Most of what we see should be not of this world. We simply forget our heritage. We become so distracted by what’s in front of us, we forget what lies ahead. In this regard we place our hope mostly in the things we can see and touch, and not in things of above (and not below). The problem with this? We will always end up disappointed.

It’s like, if your hope for your marriage is in your spouse, they will fail you. Conversely, if you are counting on yourself to make it succeed, you’ll end up sorely disappointed. Our hope for our relationships should always be on the One who created them, the One who models how we should maneuver through them, and the One who gives the best examples for how to love.

But, our eyes will only focus on the problems in our partner. Our ears will listen to the world for a solution. And then we wonder what happened to the healing.

If ever (in my lifetime) a year has shown us what happens when our senses are too in-tune with the world, and not enough in sync with Jesus, it’s been this year. So, when our eyes are seeing only the problem (and not the solution in Him), our ears are hearing the lies of this world (rather than the truth in Him), and our hope is in the solutions we can visualize with human eyes, we will end up extremely jaded.

Here’s what happens. We experience trials of this world, and we place our hope in the solutions this world offers. We put all our eggs in a political basket, or we place all our efforts into advancing a system of this world. We consider things like vaccines the only way to save us. We consider achieving civil justice the answer to broken human hearts, and while ending corruption is also God’s heart, it will not be the answer for a corrupt man. Changing systems, policies, and political parties will not heal the heart of mankind. We know this! We simply forget to proceed through life like we do.

My point is, there’s not a problem with seeking justice, truth, and a non-corrupt system. It’s honorable to speak truth, but we forget to speak it in love, highlighting the true answer for all of the above. There’s nothing wrong with seeking change through our political party of choice, but if we count on our politicians to change the world, we will never win. Point blank, we have but one hope to turn this year around. We’ve simply misplaced that hope.

We see with eyes of this world, and we hear with ears the same. It shouldn’t be this way. Jesus said in the verses above that our hearts have become calloused, but if we could understand the world with our hearts and turn, that He would heal us. Do you know how we can do that? We must learn His heart. Read that last sentence again. His heart, not the world’s heart.

The heart of this world will have you misplace your hope. It will make you place your future and hope in the systems of this world, but they cannot save you. They will, in fact, fail you. So whether your candidate wins or loses, your future and hope cannot reside there. They must be in Jesus and His heart for mankind, as stated in scripture. We must hear with kingdom ears, and see with eyes focused on eternity. But more than that, we must speak with a love that proclaims the hope we have in Him. Our words don’t ridicule or mock when they’re kingdom-minded. They speak hope, love, peace, and the joy that comes from Heaven.

Sadly, a large majority of Christians will view this as a fluff piece. They’ll say, “yeah, that’s nice and all in theory, but in the real world it doesn’t work that easily.”

That breaks my heart. The truth is, the very simple yet profound nugget in this post can change your entire life. It really is that easy. We really can have victory regardless of an election. We truly can experience peace no matter what the media may say. We don’t even have to hunker down in a storm shelter to escape the problems whirling about us. We only need ears to hear, eyes to see, and love to guide us. No matter what happens in November, the future for a person saved by the blood of Christ is set. Regardless of how this year ends or what the next year holds, there is peace in eternal life with God. In the end, our Father wins, and a new earth and system will prevail. I can handle whatever 2020 throws with that in mind.

The thing is, when you know your future is set, you can pass through the desert unscathed. In the 23rd Psalm it proclaims “though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death…”

Y’all! We’ve missed the shadow part!

There is no valley of death. Death is but a shadow.

2020, and all its problems, are but a shadow.

The outcome of the 2020 election, no matter what, is but a shadow.

And do you know the thing about shadows? They mean nothing in the face of what it real. They mean nothing without the light. The light of God’s truth reveals the existence of all things, and our hope should only be in Him. Shadows are shifting, but our Father is solid. And that is where our Hope should stand.

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Filed Under: Inspirational, Life Advice, Opinion Posts/Controversial, Relationships Tagged With: black lives matter, Christian, Christianity, controversial, COVID-19, Donald Trump, faith, fear, God's will, healing, inspirational, Jesus, Joe Biden, love, no fear, peace, presidential election 2020, racism, relationships, religion, social media, trust

Comments

  1. Lori E. says

    October 27, 2020 at 4:05 pm

    Amen and amen! (I recently saw yard sign that was fashioned like a political one: the top line read “Jesus” (in white letters on blue or red) and the bottom line read “2020” (in white on the opposite of the top color–can’t remember which was which). It made me think–the bottom line should have read FOREVER. Our country (well, really the world), our states, our counties, our cities and our towns need Jesus then, now, and always and forever!

    • brieann.rn@gmail.com says

      October 27, 2020 at 4:15 pm

      Amen. I saw that sign too and loved it!

  2. Ali Bisset says

    October 27, 2020 at 4:59 pm

    Great piece Brie and is so true not just for the USA but also for here in the UK

    • brieann.rn@gmail.com says

      October 27, 2020 at 5:05 pm

      Thank you ☺️

  3. Penni Bulten says

    October 28, 2020 at 5:12 am

    This has world wide application, but should trigger some history lessons for those who remember some of the patriots from the American Revolution. We don’t hear about it much anymore, but one of the rallying cries of the American Revolution was:”We have no king but Jesus!” One of the primary reasons people flocked here was to flee persecution where they lived, even from so-called Christian countries. It’s also the same reason some are leaving certain states now. Whether we receive a reprieve from the growing attacks on Christians here or not, we can rest on His promise that death is not the end,and the valley of the shadow of death can hold no fear of evil for those who are lead by the Good Shepherd.. My dad and I used to listen to Petra together, and we both loved Road to Zion. Two of my favorites have this theme, Road to Zion and Grave robber:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFHX55W6mSQ
    Road to Zion: One line in this song is “Sometimes a shadow, dark and cold, lies like a mist across the road, but be encouraged by the sight, where there’s a shadow, there’s a light.

    Grave Robber: This one is about the resurrection of the dead:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9QdJZUJz8o
    Hope you enjoy these!

  4. Karen Tober says

    October 28, 2020 at 11:19 am

    You’re speaking my mind, Brie. There’s but one Saviour.

  5. Lisa Pierce says

    October 28, 2020 at 3:42 pm

    I pray more people would open their eyes and ears to these truths. God is our Only hope.
    Thanks for this great post!

Meet Brie

Brie is a forty-something wife and mother. When she's not loving on her hubby or playing with her three daughters, she enjoys cooking, reading, and writing down her thoughts to share with others. She loves traveling the country with her family in their fifth wheel, and all the Netflix binges in between. Read More…

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