Steve Eng, the “advocacy director” of the National Association of Evangelicals, reflects on the presidential election:
An NAE post-election statement encourages us to “pray for God’s guidance and blessing on those who have won, that they will be good stewards of the responsibilities entrusted to them, and that they will listen and speak to all Americans, including those who feel left out or unheard. We pray for consolation for those who lost their races, as they seek new ways to constructively bless the nation with their time and talents.”
And for those rejoicing or despairing over election results, we can pray that we will all build bridges of understanding rather than fanning the flames of division.
With the prophet Jeremiah, as NAE President Walter Kim notes , we can “pray for the peace and prosperity of the nation in which we live.” (Jeremiah 29:7) Regardless of who holds the reins of power, we can “seek to live at peace with our neighbors, speak truth to those in power, care for those in need, protect the vulnerable and love all people made in God’s image, including those with whom we may have profoundly different perspectives.”
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PBS News Hour has a video piece on evangelicals and Israel. It features historian Daniel Hummel:
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Over at Glenn Beck’s news website, The Blaze, Erik Reed, a pastor in Lebanon, Tennessee, says the “character of policy speaks louder than the individual character of a candidate. That’s a choice we’re making for the sake of our children, our communities, and our faith.” Here is more of his piece. The first sentence speaks volumes:
Does character still matter in our politicians? Yes, it does, but not in the same way it did in the past.
“Character is on the ballot.” This is a common refrain from pundits and voters alike during any election season. But is that still true today? For many evangelicals and conservatives, the answer is “yes” — just not with the same weight it held in the past.
Since Donald Trump entered the mainstream political scene in 2015, evangelical Christians and conservatives have faced growing criticism. Observers note our opposition to Bill Clinton in the late 1990s after his sex scandal and then point to our support for Trump, a man with his own flaws and controversies. They ask, “What gives?” Are we hypocrites seeking only power? Is it a matter of having “our guy” in office while condemning “the other guy”?
I don’t think so. There’s more to it.
My co-host on “The Bully Pulpit” podcast, Eric Teetsel, has a theory about what’s changed. In the 1990s, the political landscape was different. Back then, the gap between Republican and Democratic policies was not as stark as it is today. On key issues like abortion, Democrats insisted it should be “safe, legal, and rare.” Both parties supported border security. Foreign policy views were more aligned than divided. The differences were there, but they weren’t chasms.
In this environment, character often served as the tiebreaker. Without a deep policy divide, integrity, honesty, and moral standing carried considerable weight in determining which candidate better represented the country’s values. For evangelicals, and voters in general, character was a critical factor because it provided insight into a candidate’s potential for leadership in a relatively aligned political field. Small scandals could derail campaigns because, in a landscape of similar policy positions, they served as differentiators. Think about Howard Dean’s 2004 campaign-ending scream; it seemed unbecoming for a presidential candidate. That standard feels almost unthinkable today.
Again, this is revealing. Allen seems to suggest that the definition of “character” changes over time. “Character” is not fixed. He may be right. But evangelicals making this argument is new.
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Trump won after Jack Graham’s other court evangelicals prayed for him to win. Now that his man has won, Graham is telling his congregation to pray in a different way. Here is the Christian Post:
“The posture for Christians should be on our knees, the posture should be prayer, and we should pray for unity in the country,” the 74-year-old Plano, Texas-based pastor and former Southern Baptist Convention president told The Christian Post.
“We know the country is deeply divided and half the country is disappointed in the result of the election, and yet now is our opportunity,” he continued.
“If you supported the election of President Trump, as I do, it is our opportunity to now, with the president and our government, to govern well and to respond with grace.”
Graham, who leads an estimated 50,000-member congregation, stressed that this isn’t a time to “spike the ball,” adding that he’s observed the shift in culture toward overt celebrations of political victories — gestures he said do little to heal the divides...
Ahead of the election, he also expressed his disapproval of fellow Christian leaders who advised against voting in the election.
He wrote: “If you are a pastor or Christian leader advising people not to vote in this most consequential election, you have lost all credibility not only in the church but before a watching world,” referencing Matthew 5:14-16.
Well, at least all of us who no longer have any credibility will have Graham’s prayers to get us through the next four years. 😉
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Let’s check in on what’s happening on X:
We now have the definitive explanation for Trump’s victory. It all comes down bathrooms at Nordstroms Rack:
Lance Wallnau on Tucker Carlson getting attacked by demons:
The devil is influencing Bill Kristol:
Lance is praying for Gaetz and Hegseth. I think it’s also pretty funny that Lance thinks Kristol is part of “the left”:
Jack Hibbs combines grievance, answered prayer, and thankfulness for a Trump victory:
Trump’s cabinet has the demons on the run:
Tom Buck is going after Trump (and Mark Driscoll) on abortion:
Shane is quoting James Baldwin:
A marvel to behold. But was God’s providence also present in 2020? What about 2008 and 2012?
This guy apparently doesn’t like David French. That’s right folks, William Wolfe calling someone else “mendacious” and “repetitive.”
“I’m at Mar-a-Lago”:
Thanks to Emma Bell for her assistance with this roundup.
That James Baldwin quote seems very relevant today.
Pray through Gaetz and Hegseth? Is this there version of praying through the saints? And, for real, God’s providence was present in every election, not simply when Trump was elected.