Thursday, August 11, 2016

Trump v. Hillary - How Did We Get Here?



There’s a ton of anticipation surrounding November 8, 2016.  The political line is drawn – Trump on one side, Hillary on the other.  I don’t consider myself overly political. I know as much about politics as the average citizen, but like everyone else, I occasionally scroll through news sites or social media to read up on the latest scandals stories about these candidates.  It may just be me, but I feel like there has never been such a clown show of an election. Controversy has always existed in politics, but this year, it seems the parties couldn’t be more divided, and the nominees couldn’t be any more despised by either side. Most (but not all) of the GOP believes Trump will shake the establishment with in-your-face change, while Dems believe The Donald is nothing more than a greedy, egotistical maniac who lacks any real experience.  The Left believes Hillary is a decorated politician with the experience to keep our country great, but the Right believes she is corrupt and should be in prison. 

Most likely, there is truth to each side’s ridicule of the opponent, and this creates a dilemma for a certain set of the population.  For the citizen who is most interested in the moral condition of the nation, this election presents a problem. There’s pretty much a zero percent chance that a true conservative would vote for Hillary Clinton. However, what is the other option? Should that conservative feel good about voting for a business tycoon who is in his third marriage and likely violated a good bit of the moral code on his way to the top? 

Considering our options come November, I ask this question.  How in the world did we get here?

I kind of mean how we got to a place where these two candidates are our choices. But, more so, I mean how our country slid into its immoral condition. 


God made life sacred (Gen. 1:26-27; Gen. 9:6), but murders (including abortions) happen every day. 

God defined marriage as being between one man and one woman, for life (Gen. 2:24; Matt. 19:3-10), but homosexuality is celebrated, and divorce is the norm. 

God provides proof all around us that He is the creator (Ps. 19:1), but schools teach evolution (Ps. 10:4). 

God gave His inspired Word (II Tim. 3:16; Jude 3), but society calls it a fairytale. 

God sacrificed His Son (John 3:16) and established one church through Him (Eph 1:22-23; Eph. 4:4), but most refuse to believe and obey.

God commanded us to obey the gospel (II Thes. 1:8), to live a life of love and sacrifice (Mk 12:31), to help others (Mt. 25:34-40), and to preach to the lost (Mk 16:15-16), but society will call you a radical or even a bigot for doing so.  

Ultimately, the answer to how we got here is simple.  God is no longer the focus.   We have pushed him out of our homes, and we have pushed him out of the government.  

How many of us are members of the true church?  How many of us study and pray? How many of us help the poor, widows, and orphans? How many of us worship just the way the New Testament instructs? How many of us teach the Bible to others? The answer is few, so it’s no wonder that our country has declined and we’re faced with the choice of these candidates.

All things considered, America is still the greatest country in the world, and I’m very thankful that I live here. I just hope and pray that it’s not too late to get us back on course as being “one nation under God.”  One thing is for sure – no matter what happens in November, God is still in control, and He will take care of his people in the end.