Faithful on Fridays Blog

How Should I Vote?

Well, it’s almost here: election day. Every four years Americans have the privilege, and I mean privilege, to vote for the candidate that they feel lines up the closest with their values and priorities. But how do you evaluate the choices? As a Christian, the answer is clear; look at what God’s Word has to say about it.

Many years ago God’s chosen people asked Him for a king and a man named Saul was God’s choice. We read about his ‘election’ in 1 Sam. 9 as it paints a picture of a humble man who cannot believe that God would choose him. In the next chapter we find Saul hiding among some baggage; I’m sure he was scared to death. Him a king? No way! But God doesn’t look at the outside of a man, physical or intellectual qualifications; He looks at the heart. God had been watching Saul his whole life and saw a man of righteous character: humility, integrity, honesty, and faithfulness, at least in the beginning.

The next king we see in the Old Testament is David. Ah… King David. Another man who from the outside didn’t seem like the right choice, but again, God doesn’t look at the outside of a man; He looks at the inside, the heart. David ruled the people with justice and fairness, in fact, he is the first in the line of kings that Jesus would come from. He was an unlikely choice for our limited point of view but He was God’s choice, God’s elected one.

David’s answer to God was this,

Then King David went in and sat before the Lord and prayed,

“Who am I, O Sovereign Lord, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far? “What more can I say to you? You know what your servant is really like, Sovereign Lord.”
2 Samuel 7:18, 20 NLT

Only God knows what a person is really like; we can only judge by the fruit of their life. And yes, we do need to judge a person by their past behavior but we don’t judge their hearts, that’s God’s business, we evaluate whether or not we can be in alignment with their plan for our country’s future.

I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them. Pray this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity. This is good and pleases God our Savior.
1 Timothy 2:1-3 NLT

So go to the polls in November and cast your ballot after you’ve evaluated who leans closer to your perspectives, values, and plans. We all desire to live in America pursuing life (yes, even of the unborn), liberty (yes, even of religion), and the pursuit of happiness as our forefathers wrote so many years ago: that much hasn’t changed.