A belated “thank you” to all our veterans and their families! Many thanks for your various sacrifices, large and small, throughout your service to our nation!
I’m going to try using a present-day example to illustrate an important principle. I understand it may be a bit controversial, but hang with me, I’m doing it to illustrate a larger point.
If I were to ask you the current status of the 2020 Presidential election, what would you say?
Most people would probably say that Joe Biden won and currently enjoys the status of “President-Elect.”
In reality, however, the election isn’t over yet. As of Wednesday, 11/11, there are three states representing 47 electoral votes where Biden’s lead is less than a percentage point (two of those races are within half a percentage point). There are another 15 electoral votes in a state where Trump is currently leading. Various news organizations have called the races and declared Joe Biden the winner, and if you go strictly by the number of votes received/counted, that may very well be the case. (It remains to be seen how many of those votes will be ordered by various legal authorities to be considered invalid.)
What you hear very little of, however, is the fact that news organizations are not the authority for declaring the winner of an election. Even though Mr. Biden has signs saying “Office of the President-Elect,” signs don’t make election results official. If you listen to most news organizations, you’d think that the election was decided more than a week ago and that Donald Trump is just a sore loser throwing a temper tantrum by refusing to concede, filing lawsuits and spreading claims of widespread cheating without producing evidence. “Officially” declaring the winner of the presidential election is consistently a months-long process, but we usually know pretty soon after election day because one of the two candidates concedes to their opponent within a day or two.
Why such a stark contrast in this case between what’s official and what we hear? Why would anyone spend so much time presenting anything other than the truth, which is that right now Joe Biden looks like he’s got a strong advantage, but we need to take a closer look at some things?
It happens this way because controlling the narrative can alter the course of future reality.
If you’re fed up with politics, stick with me for just a little longer, I’m going somewhere with this. Let’s take a “what-if” approach. What if Trump’s right, and there was a lot of tom-foolery in the election at his expense, adding states to Biden’s column that should’ve been his? If it can be proven, then he should rightfully be sworn in at the next inauguration. If not, then Trump voters will be disappointed, but will have a little more faith in the process by having people look into it. That doesn’t explain the purpose of the narrative though…
Now let’s say you want to see Trump thrown out of office. You can’t wait for the day he leaves the White House, and the sooner the better. That’s a perfectly fine opinion, and you got to have your say in the election. What’s inappropriate, however, is leading citizens/public opinion down a road that sets the stage for civil unrest. When things are this tight, if organizations are declaring one of the candidates the winner without getting a concession from the loser, what do you think will happen if “winner” status is ultimately granted to the other candidate?
It’s not a stretch to say that some of the issues raised in this election will end up in the Supreme Court. If the court decides something in Trump’s favor, the existing narrative will not allow the decision to be seen as an objective and fair decision, but rather as the courts taking away something that’s rightfully Joe Biden’s. That happens even if it’s completely fair. If even one of the states currently called for Biden flips to Trump, there will be more riots and more cities will burn. Can you imagine if a few states end up getting flipped? We’re looking at a civil war! I tend to think of this eventuality as at least partially the result of irresponsible journalism, but those reporting it this way probably think of it more like a nuclear deterrent: you want people to believe the consequences will be so bad that nobody would dare attempt it. In my mind, that’s not the role of the press.
If you’re still with me, this brings me to my main point: if you are a Christian, you need to fully expect and anticipate that the narrative will one day be flipped firmly against you. Forces have certainly dabbled in this effort here and there, and they’ve taken a lot of neutral ground, but it hasn’t gotten truly bad yet for Christians in America. If you haven’t heard it from anyone else yet, I’ll be the one to break the news to you: it’s going to get tough to openly be a Christ-follower in the United States of America, and I fully expect it to happen in my lifetime.
Many times Christians are described as intolerant hypocrites that condemn anyone who doesn’t fall in line with their beliefs. There are probably cases of that. What Christians are charged to do, I believe, is spread the Gospel to people (yes, even people that don’t look or think like us), and let God do the rest. That doesn’t always mean knocking on doors and handing out Bibles. If you don’t follow Christ, it means much more to you personally (and you’re much more willing to listen) when someone comes alongside you to help during a time of trouble than when someone leaves a pamphlet in your front door.
Unbelievers ought to be encouraged to hear that Christians are coming around. Jesus said in John 13:34-35 that people will know we’re His disciples by the way we show love for one another. We see plenty of other instances of Jesus meeting peoples’ practical needs and, well, just showing love for them in general. Regardless of who’s sworn in this January, Christ provides a model for the kind of love we are to demonstrate. It’s the roll-up-your-sleeves, get-up-to-your-elbows in filth, help-till-it-hurts (and then some) kind of love.
My friends, these days, opportunities to come alongside hurting people are everywhere. And you know what? They don’t all vote the way you vote, but those people still need help. Please help flip the narrative; when people hear “the Christians are coming,” they shouldn’t say “oh, great!” We want them to say “that’s great!” I’ll guarantee that those people shown genuine love are much more receptive to the good news of what Christ’s done for them than the folks that have political discussions with Christians only to have the Christians throw insults at them.
Keep in mind these words from the New Testament:
In everything, show yourself to be an example by doing good works. In your teaching show integrity, dignity, and wholesome speech that is above reproach, so that anyone who opposes us will be ashamed to have nothing bad to say about us. –Titus 2:7-8
God is ultimately in control of the narrative, but it’s up to us to live it out. Don’t be surprised when things get rough! Keep praying for our nation, for other Christians, and for the people that are against us; this is the only life we get to convince others of God’s love for them.