How Should a Christian Vote?

 

 

From should a Christian vote

To how should a Christian vote,

Is a matter occupying our attention:

A matter of important note.

 

Thus, we put behind us

The question regarding the should

And thus, we shall focus on the how,

Assuming that he or she would.

 

So, what are the parameters

That should control the how?

From the debate among Christians

We will deal with this now.

 

The more pious Christian believers

Would posit that we must pray,

Pray that God would open our eyes

And show us the way.

 

For whom we should vote

Since God knows everyone’s heart

And He knows the ending of a matter

From the very start.

 

From this emerges a perception

Regarding how we hear God,

Do we hear Him like Noah and Abraham

When they answered His call?

 

 

One: to build a huge boat

Since there was going to be a flood;

The other: to forsake his native land

And even leave his blood.

 

 

 

So much was up in the air

That neither of these patriarchs knew,

That they would have to be very sure

God was telling them what to do.

 

It could not have been a dream

Or some trumped up vision

As is the case of modern-day prophets

Before making a big decision.

 

No, there was a certainty

That they were hearing from God

And there was no doubt, whatsoever,

The reason they were called.

 

In the recent Presidential election

There were prophets in both camps

Hence the predicament of the Christian

Regarding a particular slant.

 

 

Then there is the “lesser evil”-

Another “how”, I have heard advanced:

If Christians vote for the lesser evil

They’d have a better chance.

 

Herein is another perception

Especially where there is cover-up

And given the propaganda machinery

You’d need more than luck.

 

Plus, is it the will of God

That Christians should vote for evil?

Does our God promote comparative evil

For His born-again people?

 

A resounding negative

Must be the Christian’s response

When in particular, by other Christians,

This nonsense is advanced.

 

Such must not be a criterion

By which a Christian cast a vote

But a thorough analysis of the candidates

Is of critical note.

 

What has been their practice

Not just what they enunciate

And how has the most vulnerable advanced

Re the policies they initiate.

 

How God-aligned have they been

Re their party’s governance

And in recognition of God’s template,

How is their moral conscience?

 

Let the Christian voter beware

Casting a vote is rather involved

And is a responsibility and accountability

That cannot be lightly absolved.

 

Vote conscience rather than emotion

Vote godliness above ambition,

Vote populace instead of person

And let God shape your decision.

 

At the end of the day

Christians will still vote differently

But they would have carried out their duty

To vote responsibly.

 

Stewart Russell © November 8, 2024

 

Simulation

 

 

We've had simulations

With lessons to learn

But never for the real thing

Have we ever yearned.

 

Except for a few

The experience they craved

And when disappointed,

They actually raved.

 

What a waste of time

To painstakingly prepare

And after all the preparation

A false alarm is declared!

 

The experts got it wrong

For yet another time

And with those pent-up emotions

We then had to unwind.

 

 

Like shouting for wolf

When no wolf is around

And making the entire population

Look like a clown.

 

Like October it’s over”

For the Atlantic storms

And these simulation exercises

Still being the norm.

 

Like today for example,

Preparing for Tammy

But who’s taking Tammy seriously?

Scarcely anybody.

 

She will be like the rest;

A promise and that is all

And in the final analysis would be,

Another wrong call.

 

Another simulation

And another waste of time,

Another building of expectation

And having to unwind.

 

 

But for me, I’d rather

Another simulation

Than experience a hurricane

With resulting destruction.

 

Of course, unlike the one

That was a recent fiasco

In which there was much fallout-

That’s a definite a no-no.

 

Let’s stop the deflecting

And face the real issue,

It is not about the simulations

But what we should do.

 

It is preparation, of course,

With goodwill intent

And not unintendedly creating

The actual event.

 

For when a simulation

Becomes the event in itself,

It’s not good for one’s emotions

Or one’s physical health.

 

 

The protocols are key

And thorough preparation

Any and every time

We do a simulation.

 

And if something goes wrong

Take responsibility

For I dare say these days

This is a rare commodity.

 

We used to pass the buck

Now there’s no buck to pass,

If this is the intent of reform

We’ll have no class.

 

Form is temporary

But class is permanent-

Let’s have simulation exercises

That are not the event.

 

Stewart Russell © October 20, 2023

No Soul

 

 

She was as pretty as they come

And intelligent too

And she could do far better

Than what any woman could do.

 

She was ultra-faithful and loyal-

This was her guarantee

And she came with, believe you me,

A life-long of warranty.

 

She was as beautiful, I tell you,

As at the first day she existed

And there was no way any man alive

Her charm could have resisted.

 

There was nothing she didn’t know

And in seconds she’d tell you

All you needed to know

Because she already knew.

 

A walking encyclopedia, if you please,

Covering every conceivable topic

And just rattling off the information

Was her regular habit.

 

It mattered not the subject

Or the level being queried,

Simple and difficult were the same to her,

Challenging was the same as easy.

 

 

 

Her skin was soft and firm-

A lovely sensation when touched,

To have her would be a dream come true-

No woman could mean so much.

 

She could recite the Holy Scriptures

From Genesis to Revelation

And answer anything contained therein-

Such amazing comprehension!

 

Her knowledge was unsurpassed

By any human in history

Jesus, of course, the only exception,

Being a member of the Trinity.

 

Ah, but to take her home with me

Would be at an irredeemable cost,

Her price was so shockingly outrageous

I would suffer a great loss.

 

Matthew 13:45-46

 

Again, the kingdom of heaven

is like unto a merchant man,

seeking goodly pearls:

Who, when he had found one pearl of great price,

went and sold all that he had,

and bought it.

 

You are probably wondering

As to why the scriptural insertion

But just give me a few minutes

To aid your cognition.

 

The merchant man sold all he had

To procure the precious pearl,

No doubt it meant more to him

Than an entire world.

 

 

Not so with this helpmeet

That I had seen on display,

She was not all you think she was-

Absolutely no way!

 

The very last thing she disclosed

That left me really reeling

Was that she had no soul, and thus-

Could not be a human being.

 

She spoke from her knowledge base

And how she had been programmed

And all this information in her memory banks

Was programmed by a man.

 

There was no moral underpinning

That resides in the soul

For she was without such a facility

And therefore, not whole.

 

No emotions outside of a soul;

Can’t identify with my pain,

Were I to purchase her as my soul mate

There would be nothing to gain.

 

I may respond to her touch

But she definitely would not to mine,

She is not wired that way

I would eventually find.

 

 

As vivacious as she looked

And as intelligent as she seemed,

She was manufactured in the first place

To satisfy another’s man’s scheme.

 

 

 

No soul, I tell you,

Unlike my wonderful Lynette,

The sweetest woman on earth…

I am willing to bet.

 

Stewart Russell © May 13, 2023