I could see on my parents' faces that something was wrong. Everything seemed hopeful the night before. I remember them being glued to the television, and sending my sister and myself to bed as they continued to watch. I hadn't heard them fighting; So what was the matter that Wednesday morning?
Well, as it turns out, a certain man from Arkansas had been elected to the second highest office in the land (consider the highest here).
But that was twenty years ago; And we're still here. The world is still turning. Jesus hasn't returned.
I'll admit that I now better understand the somber mood my parents had on that Wednesday morning twenty years ago. But regardless of what happened in the election last night, I still awakened this morning with responsibilities. Those responsibilities come from being a Christian. Those responsibilities wouldn't have changed even if it had been me elected into office.
I am still responsible for loving my wife (Ephesians 5:25). I'm still responsible for teaching my child to love God (Ephesians 6:4). I'm still responsible for loving my neighbor, and my brother (Galatians 5:14; 1 John 4:21). No matter what, I'm still called to give my all to God (Luke 10:27).
And I'm still responsible for teaching the truth.
One of the most disheartening things in watching the election coverage last night was not watching the electoral college votes tilt from one man to the other. Instead, it was the large percentage of this country that openly endorses immorality. To borrow a realization from Glenn Beck during last night's election coverage, "I just realized that I don't know half of this country." I too thought that we were different; But apparently, we aren't.
In 2 Timothy 4 Paul writes:
"Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths." (2 Timothy 4:2-4, ESV)
Oh, how sad it is to see people who have turned away from listening to the truth, and have wandered off into various myths, philosophies, and lies.
But it's the next verse that I'm ultimately getting to; It's what's going to keep me going:
"As for you, always be sober- minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry." (2 Timothy 4:5, ESV)
There it is: Always fulfill your ministry.
No matter what happened last night, I still have the same responsibilities today that I did yesterday. It may be harder now or in the future, but I can't give up. It may cost me, but I must keep going. While everything might have seemed to change, in reality nothing actually did.
How about you?
-Daniel
What an encouraging post. We all know this but it helps to be reminded. Thanks
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading and sharing, Wayne! I have to remind myself of this every day.
ReplyDeleteGREAT BLOG!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the encouraging words. I think last night proved to us that we have a lot of work to do as Christians.
ReplyDeleteHi,Really appreciate your blog...on how your being a responsible Father/Husband....Its truly an encouragement to us... Yes we as Christians have alot of work to do... But in a way I am happy that a Cultic (LDS) person is not the president..
ReplyDeleteYou have a point. Neither fully represent Biblical truth. But what bothers me more than either man who could have been President is the moral condition of our nation. I think the results from last night are indicative of that.No elected official can change that. Only being more serious about teaching the truth can.
ReplyDeleteNice blog brother! I agree. We still have the same responsibilties regardless who is in office. We must not get discouraged, and continue to be thankful all the blessings God has given us!
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a boy, one liquor manufacturer advertised their whiskey as being made "For The Man of Distinction", showing a well dressed man, with a glass of whiskey in his hand. The ads never showed the end results of using 'the choicest product of the brewers art'. They never showed the broken homes and families, the hungry and needy children of the 'man of distinction'; the 'man of distinction' himself lying in the gutter with a broken whiskey bottle; the mangled bodies of the victims who died on the highways as a direct result of the 'man of distinction' driving drunk ! Likewise, an ignorant, apathetic, ill-informed electorate boasts of their recent 'victory' in re-electing a falsely advertised product of the 'Politicians Art'. As with the liquor ads of long ago, the slick ads for this product did not show the end results of their ill-informed choice. The moral and social foundations of a God-fearing, law-abiding America, with its Biblical home and family values, is being rapidly eroded, chipped away by those who have been kept in power by lies and deceit. May God help us to stand always upon Truth and His Promises. In selecting our leaders, we need Faithful and Active Christians who will stand upon Principle, not Party, to elect Statesmen--not Politicians!"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing " ---BurkeProverbs 14:34;Psalms 107
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