Politics > Truth

Politics is greater than truth. There I said it. This may not be what everyone wants to hear or believe, but it is how seemingly everyone acts. I, for the record, do not believe this way. However, much of what I see people doing is ignoring the truth to get their political ideologies out there.

Many people claim to be open-minded. That is rarely the truth. Open-mindedness to most people is that they are open to their own ideas but closed to anyone else's opinion. I can assure you that everyone believes something that is not true. That includes me, though my wife will not believe that I truly mean it. 

It seems like everyone likes to argue and I am not an exception. No one really wins arguments. How many times has an argument about politics changed your opinion? I have changed my view on a few things, but not because of arguments. I changed them my looking at things from more than one side of the story. If someone were truly open-minded, we would not watch or read only things that agree with our point of view. 

As a Christian, I try to find the truth even when others ignore it. People seldom regard finding the truth as a good thing when that truth opposes their views. Not everyone wants to believe the truth. They prefer their original thoughts to be right. Why let the truth get in the way? This is America. You have the right to be wrong.

This brings me to another point. Many Christians seem to confuse their place in politics. They believe the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence are equal to the Scriptures. They fight for their United States rights even if it opposes what God has spoken in the Bible. Last time I checked, this place is a temporary place for us. We think more about our rights here on earth instead of building treasure in heaven. We worry more about what the President or Congress are doing (or not doing) more than we concern ourselves with sharing the truth about Jesus Christ. The Bible tells us to obey God rather than man, but we hold onto these man-made rights calling them God-given. Yes, I am an American. Yes, I am thankful for our freedoms and rights, but there is a difference between being a Christian and being an American.

I remember when Jesus was running for political office in Jerusalem. Wait a minute. That did not happen. In fact, I do not recall Jesus speaking about politics unless asked. The Bible is clear about what we should do politically. 

Romans 13:1-2 tell us we must obey those in the governing bodies. It does not differentiate what leaders we must obey. It does not say obey if you agree with them. This is hard for close-minded people. "If so and so invited me to the White House, I would not go." Chances of being invited are slim, but the attitude behind these sentiments is unbiblical. Yet even Christians will say these types of things. The Bible says, "1Peter 2:17 Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king." Whether this president, the last one, or the next one, do you honor the president with your words and hearts. 

I Timothy 2:1-2 tell us to pray for our leaders so that we may lead a quiet and peaceful life in all godliness and honesty.  Pray for our leaders, not criticize. It does not say pray that they die or become ineffective. Pray that they do the right things so we can be at peace. 

Politically speaking, I have my views and I do occasionally discuss them. I hope that my arguing days are over, but I truly doubt it. I just pray that politics never become more important to me than truth. 

Let the truth be greater than politics. 

When America Will Succeed

Today my wife and I celebrate our twenty-fourth wedding anniversary. I love my wife. I am incomplete without her. We balance each other out quite well.

Over the years, we have been through a lot together. We have seen our house destroyed by hurricane and flood. We have experienced hardships. We have endured arguments and disagreements. We have outlasted illness.

We have very little in common in our likes and dislikes. Our tastes in movies and music are quite different. We approach things in different ways. We do have a few things we have in common. We love God, family, and our time together. There are a few more things, but overall, we are quite the opposite of each other. People say that birds of a feather flock together, but they also say opposites attract. We fit in the latter group.

Overall, our marriage is a success.

America just had one of the most divisive elections in our country’s history. Rather than cover issues, we saw personal attacks most of the time. Personal attacks are not new to our political world, but this election appeared over-the-top in our modern era.

Scandals, lies, misinformation and personal attacks on character came from everywhere. Not only did candidates participate in this ridiculous election, but voters did also, as well. Social media bashing attacked not just candidates but their supporters. Friends lost friends. People did not hold back their intolerance for opposing views. America became increasingly fragmented over the course of the election.

So now the election is over. One candidate won making some proclaim America will be saved. Others cry that we are doomed. This happens every four years. We made it through every previous president whether good or bad. We will survive through this one, regardless of what happens.

One thing that I know is communication in marriage is important. If you disagree, it is okay to say so. Expressing your opinion or concerns is important so that the other person understands where you stand. Attacking the other is unacceptable and creates bitterness and conflict. Compromises must be made. Marriage is not about just the husband or just the wife. It is about both working together for the betterment of the marriage.

My wife and I compromise quite often, but not our principles. It starts off with simple things like going to bring her to get sushi. (Yuck). She will go to see a movie for me with an incredible amount of blood shed, though she watches with her eyes closed.

Doing things to help each other is part of what makes our marriage a success. The little things matter, sometimes more than the big things.

Partisan politics needs to end. If we want America to succeed, we need to understand other views. We don’t need to agree with them, but we cannot ignore them either. Everyone in this country matters. We need to work with the other side of the aisle and do the things that will help everyone as a whole.

If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. As a nation, we are better together. Diversity, not just of culture but also of ideas, makes us great as long as we stand united. We need to work together and move forward. Like marriage, we can overcome a lot if we quit focusing on just ourselves.