Angela Chininin Buele

The presidential campaign of 2016 was a no-holds-barred down and dirty battle.  Then there were public outrage, organized protests, a wide range of threats, public appeals for upsetting the Electoral College, and just today vandalism in the streets of D.C. in protest of Donald Trump’s inauguration.

So who really won?  Maybe no one.  Those who believed that Democrats would offer hope might be disillusioned by the new makeup in the Executive and Legislative Branches.  Those who believed that Republicans (or Donald Trump specifically) would offer hope are seeing that these changes have already caused lots of conflict and complication.

I didn’t champion either of the final candidates in the race, and I imagine that the new administration will seek to accomplish some goals of which I approve and others of which I would not.  The good news is that my hope has never been tied to political leaders or action.  I know that the King of Kings is the Creator and rightful ruler of the whole world, not just this country, and He is coming to set all things right.

Though I am but one person, I have been convicted of my important role in this next political cycle.  I pledge to faithfully pray for the Lord God to plant His Word and His will deep in the hearts of both Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.

I also want to make a specific impact on the general population.  I have come to see that the fog of social media has had an unsavory effect on our public use of free speech.  I want to commit to the standard of Ephesians 4:29, which says, “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.”  So when the fight gets feisty, I will refuse to pick up the weapon of insult and instead reach for the edifying tool of the Word and speak (or write) it in love.  Some still might not like it, but my goal will be to make sure you know that the Enemy against whom I fight is Satan, the one telling the lies, not the people who believe them.

You are all my neighbors, and I want my words to point you toward the One who is worthy of worship.  Because the way that God can truly bless America is by giving us the gift of Jesus’ victory over sin, not the victory of any movement of the moment.