Way of the Path Ministries

This election has been and continues to be about picking someone to lead our country. Everyone has an opinion and we all make decisions from a different point of view, but the truth is God is already on the throne and there’s nothing anyone can do to change that.

Steven Curtis Chapman captured this so well in his song:

Here in the United States the people we elect are our representatives. They represent us and are supposed to espouse our values. In this election and like many in the past, we are at odds because we have different values.

It’s really not about the candidates. I remember many times in the past that I’ve had people represent me that I didn’t like. I didn’t like the decisions they made and I still don’t. But in the end everything turned out in the end, and this election is no different. God is still in control.

This election cycle I’ve tried not to get too wrapped up in the he-said, she-said game and to recognize who’s voice was speaking each time I heard something about the other. When I hear someone say, she’s a mean person or he’s delusional, I try to ignore it. I won’t allow myself to be manipulated by fear of what I don’t know about someone.

It’s always bothered me that we don’t really know our candidates. Let’s be honest, how many of us have sat down to dinner and had a genuine conversation with the leaders we are electing? Do we really know what they stand for or why they make decisions the way they do?

I decided this election, that I would listen to the facts and judge not on just what people tell me, but on how their actions defined them.  The Bible tells us that we would know people by their actions and with so many people lying these days it’s wisdom is proven.

“Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves. You can identify them by their fruit, that is, by the way they act. Can you pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit. So every tree that does not produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire. Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions. — Mt 7:15-20

Knowing someone by their actions is not easy today because so much of our news is biased. You’d think that if you turned on the television or radio or read a news article from three of four different sources you’d hear the same thing. But, in an effort to get ratings and subscribers, the news agencies are “spinning” the words to make them attract us. If we respond well to negative reports of he-said, she-said, then that’s what they report.

What makes matters worse is that the news media has mixed public relations and press releases with the news. There is very little “fact reporting”. It’s just someone’s opinion of what you should think. Some are even promoting lies as facts or presenting themselves to be news-worthy, but are just promoting an agenda. Personally, I’m tired of people trying to tell me what I should think and it’s offensive.

This makes our job of selecting our leaders so much more difficult because we end up basing our views not on facts or knowledge of actions, but on what someone tells us about that person and their opinion.

With all these challenges, how do we decide who will represent us?  I can’t tell you how to make the decision, but I will share with you how I decide and maybe it will help you.

I examine my own heart. I pray and ask for guidance. Then I ask myself a series of questions:

• Am I listening to the truth and the facts about this person, not the lies and things that someone tells me I should believe?
• What is in this person’s heart of hearts?
• What is their motivation for what they are doing?
• Will this person put others (the country) before themselves, even their own families and friends, in all of their decisions?
• Will this person honor God in their actions?
• Would I choose them to make a life and death decision that concerns my life and expect that they would do the right thing?
• Would my act of voting for this person be honorable to God?

Jesus did all of these things for us. This is why he is on the throne, but until his kingdom is fully established here on Earth, we must choose our leaders/representatives wisely.

Just remember, there is only one WAY and he is on the throne.