It’s one week later, America.
Some won. Some
lost. Some can’t stop thinking about
it. Some really couldn’t care less. Some are angry. Some are afraid. Some are rejoicing. Some are grieving. Some are holding out hope. Some are totally hopeless.
But may I say, dear America, that wherever you fall on the
spectrum of emotion regarding our presidential election, Donald Trump (or his
cabinet selection or his SCOTUS appointments or his policy) isn’t really even
the issue.
We are a people who take pride in personal freedom to speak
and act how you choose so long as it does not harm anybody or break any
laws. We boast in being self-made in our
successes in business and in our personal lives. We delight in rooting for the underdog
(whomever you believe that to be…minorities or the environment, or the
Cubs). We relish in making a difference
for the good of the whole.
What really, truly admirable qualities for a nation to
possess! But, unfortunately, we have
become so distracted in taking a stand on the issues facing our nation, that
many individuals are completely distracted from the only thing that is actually
important. And now they are sinking,
meaning that now we, as a whole, are sinking.
We, the USA, have become deluded into thinking that our political
victories will free us spiritually. And
they won’t. We’ve gotten the cart before
the horse here. No one is denying that
there are issues, but before we can deal with our land being healed in so many
ways, we first need to address the hearts of the individuals.
[I’m going to be blunt, and please know, my heart isn’t to
offend, but to be honest. If the following words sting, then so be it.]
I’m pretty sure every American has a soapbox, some issue
that is near and dear to their heart for one reason or another. Some are rooted in cultural things, some are
rooted in flat out, blatant sin, some are rooted in emotion, and some are
probably rooted in something else. These
are the hills we choose to die on. Let’s
address a few truths regarding these soapboxes or “hills” and why dying on them
isn’t as effective as is hoped for. (My
list here is not exhaustive.)
Being legally allowed to marry someone of the same sex will
never truly satisfy your soul.
Delivering your rainbow baby will never truly heal your grief. Sleeping with some person who is not your
spouse will never truly fill your loneliness.
Rioting our cities will never truly refresh your frustration. Aborting your baby will never truly bring you
freedom. Changing your gender will never
truly show you who you are. Declaring
that any hashtagged color of life matters will never truly bring peace. Voting for the election’s winner will never
truly give victory. Selling network
marketing products will never truly bring success. Attending church will never truly bring
acceptance.
Because true soul satisfaction, true healing, true
fulfillment, true refreshment, true freedom, true identity and purpose, true
peace, true victory, true success, and true acceptance are only ever found in
the person of Jesus Christ. Everything
else is a false hope.
Life is exhaustingly and frustratingly hard. It feels like there is always one more thing
to fix, to handle or deal with. And as
soon as we get one thing done, there’s another waiting right behind it. We are the proverbial hamsters in a
wheel. But please, remember…we live in a
fallen world. It’s broken, and there
will always be something new to fix. And
when we puff up with loud voices and clenched fists and Facebook posts, we scream,
and we labor, and we try, and we believe then that through our efforts we will
win, but we are only deluding ourselves.
Whether we “win” or “lose,” it really doesn’t even matter; there will be
another thing to deal with tomorrow.
Solomon in Ecclesiastes repeatedly talks about how there are so many
things in life that seem to matter so much but are really just vanity and
striving after wind. He says in chapter
1, verses 14 and 17, “I have seen all the works which have been done under the
sun, and behold, all is vanity and striving after wind. […] And I set my mind
to know wisdom and to know madness and folly; I realized that this also is
striving after wind.” There will never
be a day on this earth we grasp total success.
There will never be a day we have caught all that we strive to catch, or
accomplished all we set out to accomplish because tomorrow will always bring a
new desire. I don’t mean to be a
downer. In fact, my aim is to be an
encouragement!
Psalm 33:16-17 say, “The king is not saved by a mighty army;
a warrior is not delivered by great strength.
A horse is a false hope for victory; nor does it deliver anyone by its
great strength.” Oh, can’t we call this
for what it is? We have confused THE
issue with the issues. We have missed
the point of this whole life. And as
such, we have missed our purpose for our great nation. Jesus did not die to make you an
American. Nor did He die to give you a
life of ease. He died to restore your
relationship with the Father, which will ultimately be the only thing that
accomplishes the root of all the issues because He Himself is the true
root. He Himself is love (1John 4:8),
peace (Ephesians 2:14), joy (Galatians 5:22).
Because all of our clamoring, all of our trying, all of our screaming,
and all of our clenching to our own personal issue, will never bring us back to
the garden, to a place of rest, to a place of restoration with God
Himself. Only Jesus does that.
I don’t know your personal issue. Maybe you have a bunch. But you can try to the point of exhaustion (or
even failure) and never reach the real root of the goal. Because like it or not you and I are both a
part of this fallen world, an active participating part of the fallenness. And as such, neither of us can be its
savior. Thankfully, though, Jesus came
to do all that we cannot do. Let’s talk
about the real hill to die on.
Calvary. Jesus already died on
that hill. And when He did, He paid for
our sin, for the broken ugliness that we can’t do anything about no matter how
hard we try. And now the only thing you
need to do is die to yourself, acknowledging that your efforts fail, but all
that Jesus did was successful and that you need Him.
And you know, the thing about our issues is that we often
allow them to hold us hostage to serve them.
But Calvary did not hold Jesus hostage.
Three days after His death on the cross where He paid for sin in full,
He rose from the dead! And by raising
up, He secured the victory for us, bringing us power to walk in Him, no longer
bound to our sin, our brokenness, our exhaustion, but giving us the ability to
walk forward according to His mercy and grace.
Worn out? Jesus says,
“’Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for
I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.’”
(Matthew 11:28-30)
Empty? Jesus says,
“’I am the bread of life; he who come to Me will not hunger, and he who
believes in Me will never thirst.’”
(John 6:35) And, “He satisfies
the longing soul, and the hungry soul He fills with good things.” (Psalm 107:9)
And, “He anointed…my cup overflows.”
(Psalm 23:5b)
Defeated? “But thanks
be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the
sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place.” (2 Corinthians 2:14)
Afraid? “For God has
not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.” (2 Timothy 1:7) And, “…greater is He who is in you than he
who is in the world.” (1 John 4:4b)
Lonely? “A father to
the fatherless and a judge for the widows, is God in His holy habitation. God makes a home for the lonely; He leads out
the prisoners into prosperity, only the rebellious dwell in a parched land.” (Psalm 68:5-6)
Worried? “Cast all
your anxiety on Him for He cares for you.”
(1 Peter 5:7)
Look, I don’t know you.
I have no idea who even reads this blog that I sometimes write. But, because I’m a human, I know you’ve got
stuff you’re dealing with. I just want
to say to you, Jesus fixes things. Maybe
you’ve spent for as long as you can remember hating God because so-called
Christians are mean and unloving, etc.
Christians are just messed up, flawed people who have been rescued by
Jesus. That in no way means they will
act perfectly all the time. Besides,
there are plenty of people who claim to follow Jesus who really don’t. I’m not asking you to follow after any
person, except the person of Jesus Christ.
Fix your eyes on Him alone. He’s
the fixer of all the brokenness. And
then let’s look at laboring together to restore our nation to the healthy place
we’re all hoping it can be.
