Welcome back to The Lemonade Stand for the 11th in our summer series on using whatever ingredients you have — the sour or the salty, the savory or the sweet — to find beauty in life.
Next Tuesday will be my last letter-post in this series! Mike and I will be jumping across the Atlantic until the end of the month. In the August 20 edition of TLS, I’ll share our destination along with the dates and locations where I’ll be teaching women’s retreats this fall in New England, the Mid-Atlantic, and the Midwest. I’d love to see you there!
Now, would you rather have a root canal than read one more word about the upcoming presidential election in the U.S.? Please hang in here with me for three minutes – I have a wise woman’s words to share that should give us all a positive way to approach politics.
But first. . .
Election Day on November 5 is less than three months away, and many of us are already weary of the vitriol and the negativity, the name-calling and the reputation-bashing. Depending on the media sources we choose to read or watch, we might believe there are two completely different political narratives in America. Or a million of them.
I appreciate the common-sense advice published by political observer Ralph Crown several years ago:
“If you find that two [media] stories are diametrically opposed, the truth is probably somewhere near the middle. If you can’t find any overlap in their basic premises, it’s likely that one (or both) is made up of disinformation.
"To determine whether a narrative is based in fact, ask yourself what the source (especially its owners) has to gain from the characterizations it makes. The more money or power at stake, the more reason they have to shade the truth.
"Look at the tone of the story. Does it use “trigger” words? Does it attempt to make you angry or arouse sympathy? Does it rely on stereotypes about certain groups? Those are techniques used in propaganda.” - Ralph Crown
But what I appreciate even more is a recent essay I read by noted Christian writer Jen Pollock Michel. With citizenship in two countries, Jen witnesses twice the political battles.
In response, she’s drafted what she calls “A Political Rule of Life.” I’m sharing it below (emphasis mine), and have printed it out for future reference. Perhaps this will help you articulate your position as a person of faith, too.
1. " I will pray for persecuted Christians and for governments—globally—to promote freedom of worship.
2. " I will pray for local, state, and national political leaders as well as candidates for political office. I will pray they love good and despise evil, lead and endeavor to lead wisely and well. I will pray they understand their authority as God-given and subject to divine judgment. Because I am a citizen of two countries, I will pray both for the United States and Canada.
3. " I will reject binaries of good guys and bad guys, good political parties and bad political parties. I will remember that human government, even at its most earnest, is flawed and limited, failing the perfect justice and righteousness of Jesus Christ the King.
4. " I will reject political conversation, private or public, and any form of media that entices me to a superior sense of personal righteousness and the unimpeachable righteousness of the political candidates I support.
5. "I will accept political disagreement in our democratic system. I will not be personally threatened when someone opposes my judgments and opinions, though neither will I shy from expressing those judgements and opinions when it is appropriate. I will seek to be wise and well-informed, and I will follow the true, good and beautiful rule of Scripture laid out for human speech, which is to say I will eagerly listen, hesitantly speak, and remember that the anger of human beings has nothing to do with the righteous ends of God. I will enter political conversation with the desire to learn, not shout.
6. "I will not prioritize fears for the fate of my nation over participation for the flourishing of my neighbor. When I am tempted toward an unhealthy, imbalanced preoccupation with the election news cycle, I will remember my call to love my enemy, my brothers and sisters in Christ, and my most vulnerable neighbors.
7. "I will not accept buzz words at face value. Instead, I will grow more intensely curious when I hear words like: woke, evangelical, far-right, far-left, Christian nationalist, Marxist, racist, misogynist, justice, freedom, threat, migrant/refugee/immigrant, patriot, religious liberty, conspiracy. I will seek care and precision in my words because language is a gift endowed by a God who speaks with care and works his will through words.
8. "I will reject any political opportunism that preys on the longings and fears of people of faith. When I hear political speech that rings of idolatry and misplaced hopes, I will name it as such and despise it as a threat to the gospel, which teaches us to trust in one name alone, the name of Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12).
9. "I will reject any call to political violence. I will remember my call to make peace (Matt. 5:9).
10. "When I fail these commitments and estrange myself from others, I will seek to quickly and humbly apologize. I will own my responsibilities for the disrepair of our political moment, and I will remember that community requires confession and forgiveness. In those moments when my need for mercy becomes clear, I will thank God in Christ who has been merciful to me and welcomed me home. I will look to receive his gracious hospitality and return it to the world.” – Jen Pollock Michel, 2024
And the last word, of course, is from the Word:
“I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way” (1 Tim. 2:1, 2).
Can someone give us an AMEN to that?
- Maggie Wallem Rowe
Maggie Wallem Rowe is a dramatist and speaker who writes from Peace Ridge, her home in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains. The author of This Life We Share and Life is Sweet, Y'all, Maggie is grateful for wise words worth remembering, and for God’s wisdom most of all.