As I pray and consider our condition in America, politically, socially, and spiritually, the scripture from Matthew 23:37 comes to mind.  “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those who are sent to you! How often I have longed to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you would have none of it!”  

Jesus lamented over the condition of Jerusalem, the spiritual and moral condition of that beloved city.  I lament over America’s spiritual, moral, and societal condition.  I am deeply troubled, and this election is of great concern.  I believe we are at a critical juncture, and the decisions we make on election day will significantly impact our future.

The political, societal, moral, governmental, and spiritual shift in America and the world over the past twenty-five years is concerning.  I am in my seventies, a Baby Boomer, having grown up in an era when patriotism was the norm and the sentiment of most was anti-communism.  My generation was not without flaws, but we valued the family, considered it honorable to work for a living, believed in the Constitution, and valued freedom of speech.

I have borne the brunt of the ire of some who believe that as a Christian and a minister of the Gospel, I should say nothing political.  I have those who profess Christianity and those who do not confront me over my position on life, especially the life in the womb.  They consider that entity in the womb nothing more than a blob of tissue, not a living being forming.

When I consider the Bible and what I have studied and been informed of by scientists and those in the medical profession, I cannot agree with that assessment.  By five weeks, that baby resembles a tadpole more than a human, but it is developing a circulatory system and has cells in its tiny heart that begin to flicker.  How can I consider that a blob of lifeless tissue?  By week six, the nose, mouth, ears, intestines, and brain are beginning to form.  By week seven, tiny little hands and feet start to appear.  Yet, they still call it a lifeless blob.

In this election, we have two very flawed candidates at the top of the Democrat and Republican tickets.  No, we have flawed candidates running for every political office.  People are flawed vessels.  None of us are perfect, and some of our personalities are more grating than others.  Both top candidates have a history of moral issues.  As much as I would like the next president to be a highly moral and deeply spiritual person, that is not the issue.   The issue is America.

Recently, at a Wisconsin rally, two Wisconsin-La Crosse University students called out, “Christ is King!” and “Jesus is Lord!”  They were heckled, and the sitting Vice President, Kamala Harris, called out to them, “You guys are at the wrong rally,” and the crowd cheered her.  She said, “I think you meant to go to the smaller one down the street.”  Exactly what rally she was referring to is not fully known, but the stunning thing is, by her words, she revealed that Jesus is not King or Lord at her rallies. 

The insistence that abortion is about women’s health and reproductive freedom is incomprehensible to me.  You can choose to hate me if you will, but abortion is not about reproductive freedom or a woman’s health care.  It is about choosing to end the life of that developing human in the womb.  Abortion is a moral issue, and my position is that it is a supremely defenseless life.  That baby cannot be compared to a kidney or any other organ in the woman’s body. 

There are a myriad of issues concerning immigration, taxes, spending, foreign policy, freedom of speech, religion, private property, the Second Amendment, and more. Which candidate will pursue a policy that is better for the economy and terrorism? 

When I consider that the Vice President said she could not think of a single decision Biden made that she would change, I take note. When I review the record of the four years under Trump and the four years under Biden, I take note. When I see the condition of foreign affairs, I take note. When I consider my retirement account and the cost of living, I take note.

I am pro-life. I am pro-America.  I am in favor of immigration, but it must be legal, and those desiring to come must be vetted and have a willingness to assimilate.  I agree with President Theodore Roosevelt, who revealed this in 1907.  “In the first place, we should insist that if the immigrant who comes here in good faith becomes an American and assimilates himself to us, he shall be treated on an exact equality with everyone else, for it is an outrage to discriminate against any such man because of creed, or birthplace, or origin. But this is predicated upon the person’s becoming in every facet an American and nothing but an American … There can be no divided allegiance here. Any man who says he is an American, but something else also, isn’t an American at all. We have room for but one flag, the American flag … We have room for but one language here, and that is the English language … and we have room for but one sole loyalty, and that is a loyalty to the American people.”

I believe that Donald Trump offers the better choice to achieve a robust economy, a secure border, protection of the unborn, remaining a Free Constitutional Republic, and peace. I do not know his or Kamala Harris’s true spiritual condition; only God knows that. I am not voting for Trump as my spiritual leader; he is not, nor is any other human being. 

We will not fix the problems in America at the ballot box but at the altar!  The issues, manifested as political, societal, racial, and moral, will not be resolved by politicians.  Only God can transform the human heart, mind, attitude, and moral fiber.  The present level of hatred, if allowed to continue and escalate, will plunge us into the abyss of destruction.

Therefore, my plea is to resist making this election about personality.  Stop participating in the vitriolic diatribe and rhetoric that is dividing us and examine the records.   I refuse to hate people.  I hate the demonstrations of evil at the hands of people. 

I am a Vietnam Veteran, a patriot, an American by birth, and a Christian by the Grace of God.  I want America to remain the Republic established in the late 1700s.  I want us to become “One nation (unified), under God” and make the ideals of the Declaration of Independence our sincere objective.  May we return to the belief that “All are created equal and have been granted certain inalienable rights, including Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness!”  

God bless you, and let’s all stand together to see America be the beacon of hope it has been for centuries.  Two passages from the Bible need to become our focus: Matthew 6:33 and 2 Chronicles 7:14. 

Vote your conscience and participate in making decisions about America’s future!