The voting is over, but the presidential election may not be decided for some time.  Voter turnout is predicted to be the highest in 120 years, yet the election results are not what many thought they would be.  At this writing, the popular vote for president is almost an even split. 

I’m not a political pundit (thankfully) and I rarely weigh in publicly on politics.  That is by design.  I believe the Kingdom of Christ is bigger and far more important that any political affiliation.  I also speak to and minister among people of different political persuasions, so I never want to sabotage my ability to minister to and with them by what I say. 

That said, there are some lessons we should draw from the election results:

• With the nation split almost evenly in such a divisive and polarized election, we must understand that godly believers feel very differently about who should have won.  We cannot assume that all true Christians fall on one side or the other of the political divide, or that one side or the other is inherently more “Christian”. 
• With the nation as polarized as it is, we must stop believing that politicians will be able to heal the divide.  So far, they have only demonstrated an ability to deepen the division.

Therefore, the Church must wake up to the fact that it is the only organization on the planet that has both the ability and the motivation to reach across political, social, racial, economic and philosophical lines to build unity and trust.  Christ is the Great Reconciler (Col. 1:20) and He has given us the ministry of reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:18). 

We are used to thinking of our ministry of reconciliation only in terms of reconciling people to God through salvation, but it encompasses more than that.  The reconciliation of Christ must impact every corner of creation that sin impacted, and we are to work with Him to make that happen.  

Now that the voting is over, it’s time for the Church to go into action to help repair the damage and reconcile the nation.  We can do that in a couple of ways.  First, examine your participation in the debate or on social media.  Did it draw people toward reconciliation or deepen the divide?  Where it may have deepened the divide, we must repent.  Then, we should intentionally pursue relationships with people who are not just like us to get to know them and build relationships of trust that will begin to heal our land.  A great place to start would be to reach out to other believers who don’t see politics the same way you do.  That’s one place I intend to begin.  Will you join me?