Vote - Monday Musing, November 2, 2020

Dear Church,

Vote. Our vote is a way of participating in our democratic republic form of government. When we vote, we are making our needs and values known to our leaders – local, state, and national. Our vote is our voice. If we do not vote, our voice will not be heard.

No one is required by law to vote in an election. According to the U.S. Constitution, voting is a right and a privilege. Many constitutional amendments have been ratified since the first election, but none of them makes voting mandatory. I believe that it is the civic duty and responsibility of every citizen to vote. We have a choice, however, we can choose to let other people make decisions that affect our life and the lives of others, or we can let our voices be heard. We should be concerned about suppression efforts to influence the results of an election by preventing a qualified person’s vote from being counted.

Scripture calls us to pray for our leaders. “The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know. Pray especially for rulers and their governments to rule well so we can be quietly about our business of living simply, in humble contemplation. This is the way our Savior God wants us to live” (1 Timothy 2:1-3, The Message). Sometimes our government leaders make decisions that we disagree with. The politics of division and destruction of our institutions are rampant in our nation. As followers of Jesus Christ, we are called to love God with all our hearts, and with all our souls, and with all our minds, so our vote is a way of demonstrating that love by choosing candidates who seek to serve those on the margins of our society. Our faith calls us to be servants in the service of others. “Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received” (1 Peter 4:10, NRSV).

There are those who seek to remove faith from the public arena. By making an informed vote, we select candidates based on facts and information. Our vote should be influenced by our faith, selecting candidates who promote the causes and values we care about, so weigh candidates based on where they stand on issues important to you.

Tomorrow is our opportunity to let government hear our collective voices – are you with me?

Faithfully,

Darren