Written by Evi Idoghor, Creator of Letstalknationblog.com
I want to offer a perspective on what has unfolded over the past couple of days. The United States election resulted in one that has caused a great divide in the Church, especially in the US. It was expected that as a Christian, who is also a United States citizen, you needed to support the Republican Party because of the values they uphold, such as being against abortion. If you voted and supported otherwise, then you were part of those who disregarded the will of God for God’s own country. While those on the opposing side couldn't bear to think how anyone could vote Republican, Christian or non-christian alike.
Let me just put this disclaimer out there; I am a firm believer in people exercising their fundamental human rights, in the sense that, anyone can vote for who they want to vote for without judgment from the opposing side. Since the President-elect has been announced, former vice-president of the United States, Joe Biden, there has been an uproar in the body of Christ, especially within the white evangelical churches.
Just as everyone has the right to vote, they also have the right to express disappointment. But what I can’t wrap my head around, is those who are now sending doom and gloom messages stating that the US is going straight to hell because they voted against God’s will for their land. Many are still praying and believing that some sort of miracle can happen between now and January 20th, 2021, when the new president is set to be sworn in.
God's will vs. Man's will
Dear Christian, just because you didn’t get your desired outcome with this election, doesn’t mean God did not ordain for things to happen the way they did.
“The lot is cast into the lap, But its every decision is from the LORD.”
—Proverbs 16:33
I remember when I was stuck at the Atlanta airport, three years ago, pleading with the authorities to let me in, as I was set to be deported because I overstayed my student visa. No matter how hard I prayed, pleaded, and asked others to pray with and for me, those people at the airport were hell-bent on not budging. I wondered if it was the enemy fighting so fiercely against me, not wanting me to live my best life in the US, doing the amazing things God had planned out for me.
I couldn’t eat for 48 hours, I cried until I couldn’t cry any longer, and then came to a light bulb moment, that whatever the outcome was, I was going to take that as the will of God. Not too long after that moment of clarity, I boarded a plane, back to Lagos. Was I disappointed? Absolutely! Did I pray? Oh yes, I did. And did God answer me? Yes, but not with the outcome I desired. I think what we are seeing today amongst most evangelical Christians, especially those who are mad and are still hoping for a miracle, or like I read somewhere, God had spoken that the current president would run for two terms, so they weren’t going to give up, is the mindset that we have been made to believe that as Christ-followers, we can pray for anything that we want, and it will be handed to us on a platter.
We have been taught to neglect the "according to his will" part in 1 John5:14 which says, “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to his will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.”
If we claim that God is the beginning and the end, and is all-knowing, then why are Christians so divided, fretful, and angry at the outcome of the elections? If we serve a God who is the Highest and knows all things, are we mad at the fact that He did not bend things in our favor? Or do we think that the causes we want to keep fighting for don’t matter to Him? I beg to differ.
Is God limited to act by who is in power?
I saw a post on Instagram stating "remove the man and politics from the equation, and you'll see the spiritual battle at play. This isn't about politics. This is about territory...I'm waging war with what God has spoken! I hope you do too." So, because a democrat will be in power, does that mean God is backed into a corner and can't perform His will any longer? Is His ability to act limited by the republican or democratic party? This is what is mind-boggling to me.
'My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure.' Isaiah 46:10 (NKJV)
Irrespective of who your leader is, if you are a believer, you have been called to respect all those who are in authority and pray for them. Romans 13:1 says—“Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God.” Does this mean that we can’t pray for God’s counsel to stand in every situation, absolutely not! The Bible says in Proverbs 21:1—“The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes.” People; let us act like we know who our God is! Just because there is a new president-elect, doesn’t mean that God’s plan or will has been disrupted.
When Jesus was born, the King at the time called for genocide, and what did God do? He didn’t displace the king so He could perform His will, rather He instructed Joseph to flee to Egypt with his wife and young child. And after some time, He instructed them to go back home, because the person who wanted Christ dead, had died. Now, God didn’t tell them to flee due to fear or because His plan will get messed up, but because His word had to be fulfilled which was already spoken saying: “out of Egypt I called my son.” Sometimes, we think God is going to act a certain way, forgetting that the Bible says that His ways are not our ways, neither are His thoughts like ours (paraphrased).
I am also reminded of the story of Prophet Elijah in 1Kings. After he prophesied that there wouldn’t be any rain for three years, he fled from there and rested by a brook for some time. By that brook, God instructed birds to provide him with food and he satisfied his thirst with water from the brook. Then there came a time when the brook dried up and the birds no longer brought him meat and bread.
Going by how some Christians in America are acting, Elijah should have been mad at God because the brook dried up. He should have worn his disappointment on his face because he couldn’t go back home. Thus, to fix the undesirable situation, he should have fasted and prayed for water to fill up the brook and for the birds to return, but God had other plans. It is all about God’s plan for humanity and what he wants to accomplish at a given time. If Donald’s Trump's time is up, it’s fine. It is not the end of the world, God will still do his bidding.
What about abortion?
This topic has been a bone of contention, and it is said to be one of the major reasons (from the outside looking in) that some Christians endorsed the current presidency in the US. While there is absolutely nothing wrong with that, because everyone has the right to vote in whatever direction they want to, however, because power is changing hands doesn’t mean it is a call for women to start killing their young.
Christians who are called to that line of work, or who are passionate about this cause should keep fighting for the truth. Educate young women about relationships. Teach young impressionable women to find love and self-worth in Christ Jesus, as he is the one who gives us value. Teach them that they don't have to have sex outside marriage. Teach them that our bodies are the temple of God's holy Spirit. Teach young women that they don't have to end the lives of their unborn children - there is always redemption in Christ, that child has a purpose.
So Christians shouldn’t act like people who have no strategies or like those who don’t worship the one and only true living God. Let’s not act like those who don’t have hope, let’s not act like it’s over or irrationally. The pandemonium in the Christian world is as a result of this whole thing about God spoke to me (so that word is final), when we don't know for a fact that the voice that was heard was from the Lord.
We are limited in our thinking and our humanity. We don’t know everything that is in the mind of God. We don’t know how he would act or react to certain things. What we can hold him to for a fact is his word. We can say - God, this is what is written, this is what we are praying for, this is what we hope for. And if it doesn’t happen, then it’s not his will for that particular circumstance or for that time.
“So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” —2 Corinthians 4:18
Lastly, let us always remember that this life isn’t all that there is; there is still eternity ahead of us. Let us not be carried away with social media wars and varied perspectives and conspiracy theories about what is happening in the world right now. Let our focus as Christians remain in Christ.
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About The Author: Evi Idoghor is a Christian, writer, content creator, and a graduate of chemical engineering from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Consumed by her love for writing and desire to effect change, she launched her online platform in 2018 to tap into her creativity and start meaningful conversations with one goal in mind—to redefine status quo.
Having spent a great part of her formative years in the US where she lived for about 11 years and got to explore what the beautiful country offers by traveling around its coasts, most of her writings have been influenced by her time spent in America. In addition to that, she has worked and partnered with writing agencies and individuals to bring their stories to life.