My soul grieves this morning. In the wake of yet another presidential election, I can’t help but fall at the feet of the Father and beg for forgiveness.
I missed it.
Amidst the months of political battle and mudslinging I was determined to stay out. I would exercise my right and vote but I would not get invested. I was the definition of a passive Christian. And because of that I missed it.
I saw the fact that the church, God’s bride, was being ripped apart by bipartisan party lines. I saw the fact that relationships were being ruined by Facebook statuses and twitter posts. People tore each other apart for a few words slung together. Yes, I saw the very disgusting nature of my humanity but I still missed it and I hope you will forgive me.
We have missed it. All of us have. We missed it when we took sides then brought out our torches and pitchforks. We missed it when we risked relationships for this race and rallied with each other to support vehement Facebook statuses. We missed it if we berated other sisters and brothers for not voting with Christ, as if he was confined to a political party. We missed it if we treated people who have eternal value like their opinions were worthless. We missed it if we turned our backs instead of trying to understand why certain issues were important to others. We missed it if we had every right to disagree but morphed our word into venom to demean others. We missed it if we did not participate. We missed it if we washed our hands of all the mess and garbage. We missed it if we were silent. And the weight of our blindness only hit in the aftermath of the election when we called the church to become unified. Somehow I feel like we’ve missed the point if we preach the need for unity only after an election has passed. We missed it the moment we started using exterior things as the basis of our unity.
I grieve because, had I understood, I would have worked to build unity. I would have used every word to edify and uplift despite opinions. If I had understood I would not have let a foul word leave my lips or rest in my heart about President Barack Obama or Mitt Romney. If I understood I would not hate one or the other. If I knew, every status, tweet, or insta-thing would have been dedicated to preaching the gospel of unity before the aftermath. If I understood, I wouldn’t have stayed silent. If I understood then I would see that the issues that God “cares about” were spread on the backs of both the elephant and the donkey. Had I understood, I wouldn’t have remained silent, I would have preached and pleaded the blood of Christ. Then I could stand in the aftermath, before the Lord, and say that through everything, I lived my life for him and his precious children.
Father I pray for mercy on me. Forgive me, I have walked blindly and passively without helping and nursing your bride when I saw need. Let me never forget this lesson.
Post Twenty-five Life 