Back on “Super-Tuesday”, I did not do something. I deliberately did not vote. Oddly, I felt good about my choice. I have voted in abstentia or in person in
every local, primary, or national election for the last thirty plus years. I have voted from Afghanistan, Korea and
Germany. Two primary reasons for my
choice; first, my vote would not have changed the outcome; secondly (and
sadly), there were no good choices.
This dilemma reminds me of an interview conducted with retired US
Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North, shortly after the Iran-Contra
scandal. In it, North told Pastor Bill
Hybels that, “the really tough decisions are when you face two bad choices --
or two good choices -- and you have to make a choice.”
An example of two bad choices. Let’s say I am running late for work (in the
Army we hold “formations” each morning to gain accountability of all assigned
soldiers). I would have the choice of
speeding to make it on time, or obey the speed limit and miss formation. It is a tough decision when there are only
bad alternatives from which to choose.
When it’s a lose-lose, or no-win situation, when it is the lesser of
evils, it is a tough decision. If I end
up getting a speeding ticket, it is bad.
If I am reprimanded for being late, it is bad. If I end up getting a ticket and a reprimand
for being late, then it is really bad.
Now two good choices. Now let us say I have won a seven night, all
expenses paid, vacation package for my family.
We can choose skiing and touring Europe or the Hawaiian Islands. Skiing on world-class slopes, fresh-air,
beautiful mountains, touring castles and cathedrals
One good choice,
one bad choice. Let’s say, just
for the sake of illustration, that I have the choice between Heaven and
Hell. It is not a win-win. It is not a lose-lose. It’s a no-brainer. When the choice is between good and bad it is
just plain easy to decide. Yet,
unbelievably, some choose not to believe.
Never mind that example, that is a different column, but you get the
idea.
When it comes to presidential politics, America is in a bad
place right now. If one does believe,
there is a good choice they are certainly part of a small minority. This election seemingly guarantees that the
majority of Americans will be unhappy with the results.
How did we get to the point where there are no good
choices? In short, the Republican Party is
reaping what they have sown – weeds.
Nasty weeds. The Republicans’
failure to stop the last seven years of Obama’s out of control spending,
unconstitutional edicts, insane foreign policy, and overreaching legislation that
has created the disaster Republicans now face.
No establishment candidate is acceptable.
Although it may be, Obama is to
blame for putting America on a crash course, the Republican lawmakers’
failure to restrain, let alone stop the impending disaster rightfully earned
them the absolute fury of all but Bob Dole, Karl Rove, Mitt Romney and other
establishment class beneficiaries.
Even though Trump and Cruz are unacceptable to the
aforementioned Republican ruling class, between the two of them, they have
garnered 1,101 of the 1,429 delegates, fully 77% of the total delegates pledged
to date. Obama has done for them what he has
done for gun sales.
While the left looks less contentious, their predicament is
no less muddled. They are forced to
choose between a self-avowed socialist and a woman whom an ABC
News poll found is most frequently associated with the word “liar”. The FBI and Justice Department may soon get
the opportunity to make it “convict”.
Nonetheless, the “liar” is leading.
My bumper sticker this election season – “Don’t blame me, I didn’t
vote for any of them.”
Thank you, Colonel. It is not difficult to identify with your frustration and fear. What a relief it is, in the midst of this confused world, to see the WIN-WIN choice to respond to the Hero of all heroes, our risen Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Despite the fact that this is a glaring no-brainer, it is astonishing to see so many (like Ron Reagan, representing his atheist views, smiling right into the camera in one of his latest advertisements, declaring "I'm not afraid of burning in hell") who ignore the evidence and scoff at the reality of our Savior's victory over sin and death.
ReplyDeleteWe in America have nurtured that brand of confusion. While we continue to emphasize the economy, rather than the morality that made this nation great, the horizon, as you have rightly said, looks bleak indeed. The problem with not voting, from my own point of view, is that that it serves to be a vote after all. If indeed we are faced with a lose-lose situation (e.g., Hitler vs. Stalin), let's all just climb into the basement and pray until we are forced into the execution chambers. But if there is a viable choice of someone who has actually stood up to the establishment that has driven us into the darkness, and yet still possesses the dignity to communicate like an adult, with clearly defined policies and proven integrity, as well as values that resemble the moral greatness of our spiritual heritage, then I will vote, though it may not make a difference because "we the people" have no stomach for that kind of leadership. My vote counts in heaven, even if it does not register here. What is the right attitude in the midst of this confusion as we head into the troubled waters ahead? Humility. I'm with Daniel on this one:
"O Lord, to us belongeth confusion of face, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against Thee" (Daniel 9:8).
There is hope. One of the candidates who recently suspended his campaign left the stage with a surprising dignity, quoting the single passage in Scripture that details how to "MAKE GREAT" a nation:
"Thine, O LORD, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is Thine; Thine is the kingdom, O LORD, and Thou art exalted as Head above all. Both riches and honor come of thee, and thou reignest over all; and in Thine hand is power and might; and in Thine hand it is to MAKE GREAT, and to give strength unto all" (1 Chronicles 29:11-12).
"Promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south. But God is the Judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another" (Psalm 75:6-7).
God will decide this election with a mirror image of "we the people" (a frightening prospect), or with a candidate that will mercifully steer us back to God, acknowledging Him as the One who ALONE can make America great.
I will be praying (and voting) for the latter.