“Only, live your life in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that, whether I come and see you or am absent and hear about you, I will know that you are standing firm in one spirit, striving side by side with one mind for the faith of the gospel.” ~ Philippians 1:27 (NRSVUE)“He has told you, O mortal, what is good, and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice and to love kindness and to walk humbly with your God?” ~ Micah 6:8 (NRSVUE)
Beloved in Christ,
The polls have closed, and tonight I am thinking of you.
As we come to the close of election day here in the United States, I am thinking of those of you sitting close to the television, and those who have turned it off. I am thinking of the poll workers driving home tired after a long day of serving their neighbors, of the families whose dinner tables hold more than one opinion, and of those who feel afraid tonight, whatever the reason. I know that for some, the stakes of this election are deeply personal, touching questions of safety, belonging, livelihood, and the future of those they love. Whoever you are, and wherever you are, please know that you are held in prayer, and you are held by God.
We do not yet know how this night will end. Some results may come quickly, and others may take days. Nor do we know how those entrusted with authority will receive the outcomes and respond in the weeks ahead. I will not pretend to have a certainty this night does not hold. But there are things I do know, and I want to name them to you with a clarity of conviction.
Jesus is Lord. The One we follow was not on any ballot, and his reign does not rise or fall with an election. Our hope has never rested in the outcome of an election, but neither does our hope excuse us from the work of justice, mercy, and peace. Through October, we walked beneath the Chi Rho, the ancient sign of Christ's name, asking what it means to put Christ at the center of how we belong, how we hold power, how we listen, and how we live. That question does not close with the polls. It will meet us again tomorrow morning.
You still belong to one another. In 1774, John Wesley counseled the Methodists who could vote "to speak no evil of the person they voted against" and "to take care their spirits were not sharpened against those that voted on the other side." That counsel is ours tonight. The neighbor whose yard sign you drove past for months is still your neighbor. The person in the next pew is still your sibling in Christ. Our belonging to one another does not require us to surrender our principles, excuse harm, or pretend that every choice carries the same consequences. It does require us to recognize the image of God in one another, even when we disagree. Let us be gentle with our words, and guard our hearts and actions with the Three Simple Rules: Do no harm. Do good. Stay in love with God.
To love our neighbor is to love God. And loving God means we are still called to be good citizens, together. When God's people were in exile, far from home and unsure of the future, God told them to build houses, plant gardens, and seek the welfare of the city where they lived (Jeremiah 29:7). Paul urged the Philippians to live as citizens worthy of the gospel, standing firm in one spirit, striving side by side (Philippians 1:27). So, we pray for all who govern, those for whom we voted and those for whom we did not. We support what serves the common good, question what threatens human dignity, and resist what harms our neighbors. Our first allegiance is to God, and that allegiance calls us neither to withdraw from public life nor to surrender our conscience to political power. None of us does this alone. Plant seeds of hope and justice. Cultivate the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These are the marks of a people being formed by Christ.
In the days ahead, let us be patient while every vote is counted, and let us pray for a public life that is peaceful, lawful, and truthful. If the coming days bring harm to those who are vulnerable, the church will speak, clearly and with love, because that is what love of neighbor asks of us. The election may determine who holds office. It does not determine whom we are called to love; nor does it determine the responsibilities named at our baptism.
To my colleagues in pastoral ministry: you do not need every answer this Sunday. Set the Table. Make room for lament and for gratitude. Trust in the songs of our faith and lean into our liturgy. Perhaps passing the peace of Christ, baptismal remembrance, or celebrating Holy Communion is fitting for this season. Help our people remember who they are and whose they are, and that the work of loving God and neighbor continues.
And tonight, before you sleep, pray. Pray for our communities and our nation. Pray for those who will lead. Pray for the neighbor you find hardest to love. And then rest. The psalmist says, "I will both lie down and sleep in peace" (Psalm 4:8). God keeps watch through the night, and in the morning, we will rise to love God and our neighbor again.
With you in the waiting, and in the hope,
Bishop Lanette Plambeck
Dakotas-Minnesota Episcopal Area of The United Methodist Church
