But...the election! Shouldn't we be afraid?

Should we be afraid with the election coming up? No, there's not really any reason to be afraid of anything with the upcoming election. Sure, some things might be bad or get worse, but they could also "get better". No one really knows anything anymore and, if they do, it's only for a short time anyway.

We've known from the beginning that this world is temporary and our time in it is a gift. It's a place where we begin an unending, and up close and personal, time with God - and it really does begin now, not just "in the hereafter".

As we begin that time here, it changes us and what we focus on. It changes what we fight for or against. It changes what we pursue. It changes all that and more because we have a new perspective about everything and we realize there's more going on than just what meets the eyes.

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A lot of people get stuck in the blend - between pursing good things and doing good in the here and now and also wanting to "get ready" for then this life comes to an end and they leave it all behind. When you think that way, it sets up an unnecessary dichotomy - an us vs. them, a this vs. that kind of thinking.

It can be confusing because we want a nice drink from Starbucks and also to alleviate poverty at the same time. What's a person to do? And churches come along and, at least in theory, can help navigate those times, but often inadvertently make things worse because they want your money and time too.

Things can get messy pretty quickly. They don't always, but they can - especially when the right or the left begin to stake a claim on truth and argue over who's following Jesus better and who's got a log sticking out of their eye and who's a better actor, etc.

It spills over into "church" and before you know it, you've got religion and politics and the economy and your job and your retirement fund and your kid's school and a lot of other stuff all blended together making something that isn't nice like when chocolate and peanut butter got together and made a Reeses.

It's not a wonder that a lot of people can get a little anxious about stuff.  You want to be right with God and you want your friends to think you're "on the right side of history" and a lot of other things that pull you in different directions.

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"This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence. If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God."

In 1 John and other places in scripture, the writers talk a lot about being at peace and relaxing, as it were, in the middle of some really crappy situations their audiences were going through. Like, there's real peace and hope, even in the middle of what often feels an out of control world.

I like what John says in 1 John 3 (the above bit of scripture) about knowing that even when our hearts condemn us, God is greater than our hearts AND he knows everything. We're prone to panic and fear and pick sides and follow the crowd off into our own holy wars.  John and others say we can relax.

Even if you don't "feel right with God", it doesn't change your place with God - he is greater than your heart and/or your feelings or worries, etc. Our confidence with him is stoked when we remember this! We can get wound up in our heads pretty quickly - John says there's no need for that. Lean into the good.

Just because someone invites you to something doesn't mean that you have to accept their invitation. Same with when you're asked to have an opinion about anything.  And the way things are written, posted, or even said these days almost demand that people pick a side and have an opinion.

But we don't. Paul wrote the Corinthian believers reminding them that we're kind of like people on a mission and we don't have to or need to be distracted by all the stuff around us, even though it's often going to call out to us, even through religious groups - "Look over here!  Do this now or it'll be too late!"

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God isn't unaware of anything.  He knows what's going on right now.  He knows what goes on behind closed doors.  He knows way more than you.  He's not worried about any law you want passed or don't want passed.  He's not worried about any particular politician getting elected or run out of office.

That's what you and I get worried about when we are looking at our wallets or at our own causes that we want funded or defunded.  We get worried about things because our motivation is our own, even when we feel like it's something from God, it's usually our own.

So I've decided to be as worried as God is worried.  And he ain't.

I know that's super hard to lean into and some days I have to work at it more than others.  

But is life giving and focus bringing and love surfacing and mercy multiplying in so many ways.

Grace and peace.

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