Why my focus is not on Donald Trump

This article is not intended to influence how you vote on Tuesday, November 5, nor is it intended to influence how you view former president Donald Trump. Instead, it is to help you keep a godly, faith-filled, and sane perspective in the months leading up to Election Day, since things could get pretty crazy before then.

During his presidency, Trump was sometimes called the “great disrupter” (or, “disruptor.”) If things got dull, even for a moment, he was sure to stir them up.

As stated in an October 2018 article on The Hill by Thomas Hicks Jr. and Curtis Ellis, “President Trump — the Great Disruptor who is challenging the premises and practices that all the Serious People tell us are immutable — is disrupting business-as-usual in Washington, New York, Geneva, Brussels and Beijing.”

For his supporters, this was great news. For his detractors, it was a disaster.

Either way, the Trump presidency was anything but a time of peace and calm, a maintaining of the status quo.

That’s why Trump was also likened to a whirlwind, generating headlines like this one, posted on Yahoo News in May 2017: “To Evangelicals, Trump is The Whirlwind. And they’re fine with that.”

Opinions about Trump became so polarized that I wrote an article in October 2018 titled, “Donald Trump is Not the Christ and Donald Trump is Not the Antichrist.”

I was reminded of this when a colleague sent me a 2023 YouTube video claiming to present, “15 Bible Verses That Identify Donald J. Trump as the Antichrist.” At present, the video has more than 533,000 views.

This stands in stark contrast to the 2022 bookPresident Donald J. Trump, The Son of Man — The Christ.

And for those who are undecided, there is also the 2023 bookDonald Trump Servant of Jesus Christ or ...of satan?: Have we been deceived? Judge for yourself!

Note also that this video and these books were all issued when Trump was not in office. Can you imagine what the coming months will bring? We have barely seen the whirlwind yet.

In fact, from the recent court rulings against Trump, accompanied by massive fines, to the Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling that Trump could not be removed from state ballots as an alleged “insurrectionist,” you could say that things are just beginning to heat up.

Added to this are the threats from some Democratic leaders “that they might not certify the 2024 presidential election results if former President Donald Trump wins,” and it is easy to see how chaos could erupt at any moment.

This means that the next 8 months (and perhaps those immediately following too) will be marked by election fever on steroids.

“If Trump wins the election,” one side warns us sternly, “there will be a civil war.”

“If Trump loses the election,” the other side counters forcefully, “there will be a civil war.”

Either way, according to some, here comes a civil war.

Then there are the concerns about the health and mental acuity of both likely candidates, President Biden and Donald Trump, along with declared and potential third-party candidates, not to mention other, potential legal battles the two principal candidates will face.

The media will have a field day with this, as will social media influencers weighing in with the latest clickbait video.

Here comes wall-to-wall madness. Here comes turmoil by the hour. Here comes non-stop agitation.

And I have not mentioned the endless polling, often designed to influence as much as inform — if not simply to inflame.

That’s why neither Donald Trump nor the elections are going to be my primary focus in the months ahead.

That’s why, by God’s grace, I’m not going to allow anything outside of me to steal my peace, take my eyes off the Lord, or get me off my mission.

When it comes time to vote, I’ll do so in an informed, God-fearing way.

But getting agitated and worked up and frustrated won’t help us personally, nor will it help our candidate of choice get elected. Come Election Day, we get one vote and one vote only.

And, unless we are called to political action, to get out the vote by campaigning, fundraising, or educating, we do best to focus our attention on things that build us up spiritually, strengthen us emotionally, and fortify us morally.

We can pray for justice in the courts and a fair and free election. But getting worked up over the daily drama won’t change the outcomes in the least.

That’s why, as believers, we do best to focus on ways to unite us around Jesus rather than divide us over a candidate, to give ourselves to things that equip and empower our brothers and sisters rather than tear them down and ridicule them.

Doesn’t this make good sense, both practically and spiritually?

The psalmist said, “I keep my eyes always on the LORD” (Psalm 16:8).

We do well to follow his lead.

And Paul gave this wise counsel: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

He then added, “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things” (Philippians 4:6–8).

Let’s do our best to heed these words in the volatile months ahead. It will do our souls well and, in the end, do our nation well.