It’s Thursday and the mid-term election results are almost settled. While it’s clear the Democrats won in a landslide, how everything settles out is still an open question. I’ve heard many Republicans sharing their “Chicken Little” conclusions, and I’ve seen Democrats dancing around like Rocky after defeating Apollo Creed. It was an election where a large majority expressed their displeasure in how our nation is being governed. While many of the “Chicken Littles” think this was a poor decision on the part of the majority and a rejection of Christian values, I believe wanting good governance is a reasonable desire. On the level where we live, we haven’t really gotten that in many places.
And for the Rockys on the winning side, like a friend recently told me, the electorate expects your party to institute better governance at all levels rather than getting sidetracked by thoughts of retribution and comeuppance. Yes, corruption is a legitimate target for investigation, but at the same time, the citizenry reasonably expects a focus on making government work for the people. And it seems both parties are expected to work together and compromise, so that government can begin working better for the people it represents.
I worked as an election assistant in my local precinct on Election Day (The reason I am a day late with this article; I was exhausted.) I was heartened by how kind and patient people were as they waited in line to vote. People were smiling, talking to each other, thanking election officials for their work that day. It felt like a community. My conclusion about the results is that people voted to make decency in our politics normal again. As a I wrote about a few weeks ago, politics has long been focused on hot-button issues, but what has been changing over the past four decades is the increasing number of Christians who have come to believe the best way to change the direction of our country is to elect people who view their issues favorably, which, by the way, is a fine position to hold. What has grown increasingly lacking though among believers is the kind and gentle tone toward others who disagree with us. Rather than merely disagreeing with them, in many minds they have become evil or unwittingly used by the devil to serve his purposes. Social media and the tone of the Trump era has hyper charged this. Neighbors and friends became enemies and threats to our perceptions of what America is supposed to be.
Nothing can or will change if people on the opposite sides of issues can’t treat each other with decency and respect. The idea that we must have everything our way is not how democracy works. It, by design, requires compromise, and particularly in this current environment, it needs to be encouraged because people are weary of the contentiousness of our country. This election signaled that.
So, where do we begin to help make that a reality? Let me offer some suggestions.
I served as an election assistant because I was weary of people degrading our election process and particularly our election workers. My experience just further cemented in my mind that our elections are fair, and workers are just trying to do their best to help people vote. I am sure that we workers didn’t fully agree on the issues or the people running for office, but we got along well and nothing nefarious happened as we closed the polls and gathered the ballots. So, I would encourage you to get out in your local community and help others in some way. Get to know your neighbors and others by working together. One does not have to agree on everything to work alongside others to serve. And, who knows, maybe you’ll come to conclude you actually like them!
Spend some time reflecting on how you may have contributed to what voters said they are tired of. Many Christians believe they must take stands on biblical values, but often we run those values through a mental filter and exclude some as of lesser importance. What is interesting is how little time Jesus and His 1st Century followers spent addressing cultural issues. Any of them. And there were plenty. When they did, such as Jesus with the adulterous woman or Paul in Athens, they did it in a way that was full of grace. Perhaps it would be good to reflect on how your views have affected how you treat people and speak of them.
Spend less time with media that is strident and designed to keep you fearful and angry. Instead, focus more on media that is encouraging and uplifting.
The followers of Jesus, by definition, are ambassadors for Jesus. We represent Him in this world, and the question is, what do people see in us? People were attracted to Jesus not because of His stand on issues of the day, but by the way He taught and the way He treated people. He was criticized by the religious leaders for associating with ‘sinners’. Can the same be said of us?
I think the best way to respond to the results of this election is to go out among our communities and represent Jesus, not merely with t-shirts, bumpers stickers, or license plates, but by the way we treat people. Treating them with love and kindness is the place to start repairing the damage done by the toxic political atmosphere in which we have lived for such a long time. And it just may be the way to usher in the change so many of us long to see.
Until next time . . .
© Jim Musser 2026
