America, the Political

Hello beautiful people.

Over the last couple years or so, I have had a constant internal battle raging in my mind. The reason this battle began was because I actually started to think. Like, legitimately think. I stopped assuming or adopting what I had long assumed were "givens" and began to critically analyze who I was and what I believed. The answer to both of those questions turned out to be one in the same: I am a follower of Christ. That is who I am and Jesus is what I believe. Now there's obviously a lot more depth to the second part of that statement but the aforementioned raging battle relates to being a follower of Christ within the context of this world, and more specifically, the political constructs in which God has chosen to place me.

Or, to bloviate slightly less and get straight to brass tacks (did you know it was tacks instead of tax? I learned that this week... God has a funny way of humbling us on any given day.): how does one reconcile being Christian in the current political climate of America?

It is impossible to cover the many facets of this topic in a short post but I think it is one of the greatest daily time consumers within the context my internal monologue. (Yes, I talk to myself in my head essentially all day. Although, one could argue that that is what thinking is, no?) So I feel compelled to address it here because, especially during these times, it's impossible to share these thoughts with all of the people in my life in a serious one-on-one conversation. Currently, the only adult I interact with verbally on a daily basis is my wife and we have discussed this topic in detail on several occasions. But the pull to further this discussion by floating it out there has been weighing on my heart for sometime.

In any case, the current American political landscape, without providing any personal context just yet, is incredibly messy. Some might even say dangerous. Part of this is because there are a variety of forces beyond just politicians that are at work attempting to influence Americans, whether it be for monetary or political profit. 

Throughout the course of human history, "superpowers" have existed in a variety of iterations. Think of the Persian Empire, the Greeks, the Roman Empire, Genghis Kahn's Mongul Empire, and the "sun never setting on the British Empire" just to name a few. The thing these entities all have in common is they eventually faded; they eventually fell. Similar to the sports' cliché of Father Time being undefeated while referring to aging athletes, even those who were the greatest of their sport, no matter how great a nation-state, empire, country, etc. becomes, it will always eventually be humbled. 

While I have slowly begun to understand the fallacies of American exceptionalism, there is no denying that the United State of America is the current world leader in GDP (gross domestic product), one metric used as a broad measure of economic progress. It isn't perfect but what I'm trying to point out is that by an unbiased measure, the USA could currently be considered the most prosperous nation in the world at least by size of economy. Why does that matter in this larger discussion? Because in a way, the USA has become the world's reigning "superpower." Tying this back to outside influences, many people believe that discord within America is beneficial to other world powers such as China or Russia. Despite there not being worldwide warfare, there is still certainly tension among nations and people groups. 

To make a long story short, our political landscape is so tenuous not only because it serves the interest of other countries/groups to see us fail, but because of the dramatic polarization that is occurring across our land. And despite several of our founding fathers warning us of the dangers, America has seeped itself in a two-party system that has sown the seeds for our political climate today.

How does this relate to my initial internal struggle? Well, it would seem that too many people are focused on their political party instead of their beliefs. I say this in regards to everyone, not just Christians. The loyalty people show to one of the two major parties in US politics is incredibly dangerous and, in my opinion, often times in direct conflict with their system of beliefs, whatever that system may be. The polarization of political thought by Americans, as shown here, lacks the nuance, compromise, and balance required to implement constructive policies to successfully govern 330 million people with a wide swath of social and economic backgrounds. 

Personally, as a follower of Christ, my loyalty is first and foremost to Jesus and His Gospel. It isn't to the United States, a political party, or the Constitution. Without delving into too many specifics just yet, I feel that American Christianity as whole may have lost sight of that during the 21st century. Neither of the political parties that dominate the current landscape promote the teaching of Jesus Christ. One side claims to be for life but has no problem systematically extinguishing thousands of lives a year. The other claims to be for life and freedom, while clinging to hand-held death devices for dear life and refusing to acknowledge that America has a ways to go to fully realize equality and freedom for all. Both are hypocritical and ideologically confused.

There will be more to come on this but it is incredibly frustrating to see people put so much trust into a party and system that so blatantly disregards what really matters. And guess what. The lesser of two evils is still an evil. Our options shouldn't be two evils.

The daily verse today is short and sweat. It is Matthew 6:11:

Give us today our daily bread.

Many may recognize this as part of the Lord's Prayer, as given by Jesus during the Sermon on the Mount. What it means is to come to God, our provider of everything, with a humble attitude and an understanding dependence on his goodness to supply us with our daily needs. And this is not only limited to bread and physical nourishment. It refers to our emotional and spiritual needs as well. 

Today, and every day, I hope that I (as well as you dear reader) can humbly approach our Lord in acknowledgement of his provisions.

2021 Resolution Tracker

Moses Miles Walked: 21.3 miles

Books Read: 1

    Completed: The Book of Basketball by Bill Simmons review here

    Next Up: Counterfeit Gods by Timothy Keller

Bible Progress: Deuteronomy 19