“Where people of goodwill get together and transcend their differences for the common good, peaceful and just solutions can be found, even for those problems that seem most intractable.”

–Nelson Mandela

Well, we’re now past Labor Day, meaning the election season will really heat up. Suffice it to say, there’s a lot of handwringing going on by the American people. Other than lowering the average age of the two candidates by eleven years, not much has changed with the ushering in of Vice President Harris for President Biden.

There’s a wide chasm between the publicly-stated policy positions of one candidate and those of the other. That leaves the voters in a quandary, and, if polls are of any predictive value, pretty much evenly split between the two. This means we’ll be deluged with print and media ads ad nauseam, furthering our handwringing.

An election year, like taking a plane trip, used to be fun. Candidates stated their positions, contrasted them with those of their opponent, ran reasonably decent campaigns, and the voters made an educated choice. Now, politics is tainted by doublespeak, false accusations, and policy positions based not on a candidate’s core values, but what “sells” best to the American people. Like the plane ride, we’re glad when it’s over!

Is it any wonder many people just tune it all out? I suspect most of us tire of it all and some folks don’t even bother to educate themselves. Rather, they vote for the party with whom they’re affiliated. That’s why unaffiliated voters typically determine an election outcome.

It’s all enough to make us reach for the Tums or pull out our hair. These are desperate times, right? Wrong!

Notwithstanding protests to the contrary, we’re not on an existential precipice, with democracy at stake or a dictatorship-in-waiting. That’s just what each major party wants us to think–so-called gaslighting. Scare us into submission, see it their way, and pull the lever for their candidate (Are there still levers to pull?).

Our nation is two hundred forty-eight years strong. Any given administration lasts four years, or eight if the president is performing adequately. Thanks to our founders, there are plenty of checks and balances in place to limit the president’s executive actions and the work of both houses of Congress.

Actually, believers know our country’s well-being and fate are in the hands of God. We’re caretakers of this country we’re blessed to live in, and I feel certain He expects us to handle it with care, take care of our natural resources, and treat one another civilly.

By the same token, I suspect it pains Him to see us act with such divisiveness and vitriol over things as fleeting and inconsequential as political positions. When I’m lying on my death bed, I doubt I’ll be worried if I was Democrat or Republican “enough.”

There are more important things for us to focus on, like our families, our neighbors, and our faith. Jesus said, “First and foremost, we should love the Lord with all our hearts and minds, and then love each other as we love ourselves. On this, everything of true importance hinges” (Matthew 22:37-40, paraphrased).

What an incredibly straightforward statement to make, and what an incredible difference it would make in our world if we obeyed it.