4 Things We Can Be Thankful for During the Election

We’re almost there. Just one more week of campaigns, and then we vote. But then…we will have voted.

I have a hunch that no matter what happens next Tuesday, giving thanks this month is going to be a challenge, and we may need to get a running start on this season of Thanksgiving.

In a season where screaming matches are the norm, can we develop a quiet life that speaks loudly with Thanksgiving?

When I’m overwhelmed with “what if,” I give thanks for “what is.”

I don’t know about you, but I’m overwhelmed by a whole lot of “what ifs” for the upcoming weeks.

But there are still a whole lot of really great things to give thanks for.

Here are 4 things we can be thankful for during this election season:

Even rulers and authorities have been created by and for Christ.

For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him.

Colossians 1:16

Throughout history, God has used kings and authorities, both good and ungodly to work His purposes. Jesus came into a world where His people were ruled by an ungodly regime. Yet it was through the Roman empire that the work of Christ was accomplished for our salvation. And through its system of trade routes and roads the Jesus story spread across the globe.

Through the prophet Isaiah, God reminded His people, “I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.’” Isaiah 46:10b God’s purposes don’t depend on an earthly ruler.

In fact, God can bring even the most prideful, ungodly ruler to Himself. (See the story of King Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 4).

Christ holds all things together.

He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

Colossians 1:17

He is before (and He’s after) all things. He’s the first and the last (Revelation 22:13). Our eternal God was there in the beginning, and no matter what happens in a couple weeks, He’ll be there too.

He holds all things together, meaning in “its proper place and arrangement” (Dictionary of Biblical Languages). Can we trust and give thanks that He’s holding this all together, in the right place and arrangement?

Through Him things continue to exist. So, come November 9, if we’re all still here, we have something to be thankful for–He’s still holding us all together.

When it feels like the world is falling apart, He is holding all things together.

When you feel like you are falling apart, He will hold you together too.

We know the Spirit of Truth.

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.

John 14:16-17

Whether or not our leaders tell the truth, and if the whole world believes a lie, we have the Spirit of Truth. In fact, the Spirit of Truth lives with us and will be in us.

When we feel confused or alone and can’t decipher what’s true anymore, we can rely on His Spirit to help us.

The Spirit will help us decipher the truth.

We have not been left as orphans.

I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.

John 14:18

Can we just pause here? We are not orphans. We have a Father who sees, hears, and cares for us.

When we feel like there’s not a place for us, that our voice isn’t being heard, that there’s nowhere for us to belong, we are not orphans. That means we have a family.

Not just a Heavenly Father, but brothers and sisters right here and now. Siblings may squabble, but there’s a common bond and a history that unites us.

Let’s remember this in the coming weeks, and let’s give thanks for a Father who is coming back for us, and for our family of believers.

Give thanks for a Father who is coming back and did not leave us as orphans.

What about you? What are you giving thanks for in the coming weeks?

How are you cultivating a life of faith instead of fear?

Encourage means to give courage! Let’s do that for each other in the coming weeks.