First Baptist Church of Herndon

A Two-Way Street

Linda Soller | Nov 06, 2023

Election week in Virginia. This used to be a time when we tried to remember to vote, went to the polling place, watched the news for results, and then if our candidate didn’t do well, we could complain. How does the saying go? If you don’t vote you can’t complain. But it feels more complicated now. Now people refuse to accept when they lose, the winners can’t seem to win without rubbing it in, and the public is left feeling suspicious of the very people we elect to office. I don’t remember a time when I have had so many concerns about elected officials and their motivations. It’s a shame because they have a huge job, a responsible job, and a job that impacts our future. We don’t elect them for their own personal glory or gain. We don’t elect them so they can have their own way or else take their toys home. We elect them to represent the people of their location knowing that not all of those people are fans. So, the officials have a privilege and a responsibility to balance what all of their constituents want and what is good for the state and/or country as a whole.

On the other hand, each person who is entitled to vote has a privilege and responsibility to take the elections seriously and understand they may sometimes support the losing candidate. Regardless of what you may have heard as a child, there are winners and losers in elections. Everyone will not take home a prize.  We need to learn to be good at both. We should try our best, but the world won’t end when there is someone who can do things better than we can.

So how do people of faith balance the political world with their call to love one another? I think we must remember that we are followers and believers who have been tasked by God to love God,  and our neighbors. Maybe He is hoping we can see both directions on our two-way street. It can feel hard and complicated. We may wish God would step in and fix things for us, but I think God is watching to see how we fix things.

Be the love in the world  : )   Linda