Lessons from theHeart
Elections/Revolutions?
By Jeff Tomson

Tomson

As we leave our local election season and enter into a presidential election year, one you might expect to read about one of many political problems that I feel is addressed by scripture. You might expect to read about a "good" candidate or maybe my dissertation about the separation of Church and State. Instead, I want to use what I was taught in school about the election process as a backdrop for a discussion of our spiritual lives.

Let's think about what happens at the end of an election - someone wins and someone loses - a job is gained or lost, - and one group celebrates while another mourns. Ultimately something changes. Someone can say, "See, we told you." While another group cries "Foul!" I was taught that every election was an opportunity for revolution, and that the process kept our nation safe from many full blown civil wars because it always offered the hope that change is just one election away.

We know that sometimes revolutionary change occurs, but more often than not even if a political change occurs it just seems like the world continued on in spite of the change that took place. However, instead of having a revolt we simply turn our eyes and our hope to the next election. You see, the process maintains the hope for change and with that hope it diffuses some of the frustration that we feel thus causing us to wait till next time. The urgency is gone.

That is the way it is with many of us Christians and as yet non-believers. We know that we are less than perfect and if we are honest we know that we need revolution in our lives; however we can put it off because tomorrow is another chance for that revolution. It is easy to simply put things off because it is not that urgent or pressing at this time.

As you read this, how many of you have been thinking about getting back to attending church? Have you ever said to yourself "Someday I am going to stop and say hi to the guy down the street and see if I can get to know him, maybe even invite him to Church?" How often have you thought about investigating who this Jesus guy is, but decided to sleep in one more Sunday morning?

James 4:13-15 and I Thessalonians 5:1-2 tell us that things may be more pressing than we think, the world may not end today but it might end for you or me. What are you putting off until tomorrow? Today could be your revolution or you can take the chance that you will change things tomorrow, that is if you even see tomorrow.

Jeff Tomson is pastor at Living Faith Church of the Brethren.