No matter what circumstances, God can change hearts, let's trust Him

In every situation, someone won't like the results.

Take something as little as rain. Farmers like it to grow crops, but kids don't if it cancels their baseball game. Yet, those same farmers want dry weather to plant and let the sun work - so even they don't want rain all the time. No wonder God chose rain to demonstrate how the things of this life happen to everyone.(Matt. 5:45) Thankfully, while "In this world ye will have tribulation," we can be of good cheer, since He has overcome the world.(John 16:33)

Some stuff is much worse than rain, of course. God allows bad things because to not do so would be to end cause and effect. Cartoon physics would result if He stopped everything in a freeze frame each time someone was about to do something wrong. (And where would the frame end? What if someone put one foot in and the rest was outside?) You can't have a knife cut food and not a finger if a hand slips as one chops vegetables. Cause and effect are necessary to make the world make sense so we know what to expect.
 

Even in those bad things, all things work together for good to them that love God, to them which are called according to His purpose(Romans 8:28), as He works His perfect plan to save anyone who trusts in Him by faith to save them from their sin.

God gives us another way to know what to expect, too. He warns us of things to come, such as the terrible decline in morals near the end(2 Timothy 3,etc.), or the increasing attention on Jerusalem(Zech.12:1-3) and cooming war with Russia, Turkey, and iran aand others against Israel.(Ezek38-39) He also warns of His judgment unless we repent.

Those who wanted someone else to win the election may say the result is God's judgment. Those who got the result they wanted might even say that. With the choices given, one could argue the entire process was God announcing His judgment no matter who won, as politics has developed the stench of a sandwich left in the refrigerator... since 1991!

Whether or not you got the results you wanted, imperfect people can't create a perfect world. The world won't be perfect till  Jesus returns.

There are things we can do to make things better, though. As shown before, such as here, for instance, prayer works wonders - as long as there's nothing between you and the Saviour.

How can we make positive change?

Make sure your heart is right

One person won't change everything, nor could one party. The world's problems come from a heart problem.

So, you ask, If I'm going to change things, why does my heart need to be right?" Because, if you want to drive a friend to Miami, and keep heading for Alaska, you'll never get to Miami, right? 

I've often used the example of getting mad because a person cuts you off in traffic - but it turns out they are rushing to the hospital to see a hurt loved one. God's justice is best because He alone knows what is best in each situation; He doesn't create a one size fits all world but instead allows freedom within His boundaries. After all, He didn't just say "don't eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil," He also said they could eat of every other tree. The world was perfect till sin came into it.

We've all sinned in action, word, or thought, falling short of his perfection. The wages of sin - what we earn because of it - is death, separation from God's perfect heaven and His perfect love forever. However, that verse, Romans 6:23, goes on to say that the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

In other words, we need to recognize the sin in our lives and confess and forsake it. That includes making sure we know for sure we have His salvation so God can guide us in any situation.

This world can't last forever. God tells us what will happen. One day, He will step in and judge all the wickedness of this world. Given events in the Middle East, it could be very soon. Nobody knows when it is their time to go anyway. So, it's vital to make sure you are saved and walking with Him.

So, if you were to stand before God, and He asked why He should let you into His perfect Heaven, what would you say?

Salvation isn't earned or deserved; we have all lied, hurt others, been selfish, etc. at some point. You must be saved by grace - a free gift - through faith, and "not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works, lest any man should boast."(Eph.2:8-9; works come in verse 10 but only after we are saved to earn us rewards in Heaven.)

There was lots of boasting in the election, as well as all over the world, of what people can do. God realizes that's not very pleasant when people can boast of how they get somewhere. He knows equality is vital - we are all equal before the cross. Many worry about income and other disparities, but God knows this world isn't forever and Heaven is what's important. There's no pain, no suffering, no heartache, nothing bad there. Nobody can do anything bad to anyone there because God has made them new inside. Nobody has seen, heard, or even imagined the wonders that await us.

That being made new inside is what is needed, so He can forgive you and save you from your sins - lying, selfishness, etc. and give you a new hear.

You can invite Jesus to forgive you and save you from your sin right now if you haven't, with a prayer something like this in your own words - remember the words aren't what saves, it's you repenting and turning from your sin and letting God make you new that saves. "Dear Lord Jesus, I realize I'm a sinner and don't deserve your perfect heaven. I know you tookt he punishment I deserve for my sins, though. Lord Jesus, I believe You are God in flesh and did all that was needed when you died on the cross to save me and rose from the dead. Lord Jesus, today I turn away from my sin and invite you to saveme and make me new inside, I call on you to forgive me, a sinner, aend I turn from my sin, and I believe by simple faith you have saved me and written me in your book of Life. In Jesus' name, Amen."

You can go someplace like here if you've trusted Christ as your Saviour and have online mentors help and answer questions. This is a good place to have questions answered, too.

Godly priorities found in His Word help us grow, impact the world positively

 As noted above, God wants us to have peace. "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee."(Is.26:3) "My peace I leave with you, NOT as this world gives; in this world ye will have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."(John 16:33) The way to have this is to have Godly priorities.

The only thing we'll take with us if we go to Heaven are the souls of others and what we did for Jesus - He is preparing places for us there.(John 14:1-3) God doesn't want anyone to miss out; He created that place of outer darkness only for the devil and the angels that rebelled.(Matt. 25:41) People go when they spend a lifetime rejecting His free gift of salvation over. Sure, we want to be happy in this world, and there is a verse specifically addressing those who would enjoy life. However, God knows that the things of this world won't make us happy the way the things of God can. And, by following his priorities, we can show others His love and help them understand how different His ways are from this world of wickedness, faint praise, and shallow, physical satisfaction.

After all, as the above link shows, Jesus offers "life more abundantly"(John 10:10) - so if it's more abundant than what the world offers, it makes sense to make sure to focus on that. Second, while salvation is instant, God wants us to grow in Him and be more like Him once we do trust Him to save us.(Phil.1:6, etc.)

That growth is how we improve the world, as well as lead someone to want to be saved from a lost and dying world. It may seem to some like there's little they can do, but this world isn't all there is, anyway.

What are those priorities? Letting God grow the Fruits of the Spirit(Gal.5:22-23) is one, including playing your part by choosing each day to do so and being proactive ain that. Philippians 4:8 gives a bunch of great things to focus on. Laying aside not only sins but weights - things that take us away from God - is another(Heb.12:1). Being kind, considerate, caring for others, and so on are very important to God because He wants us to show who He is. After all, some have never heard or seen an example of Jesus Christ.

however, while God wants to change us to be more like Him, transformed by the renewing of your mind(Rom.12:2), we are supposed to work in this world helping others, too.

Here, then, is where we can take action no matter who won - and, that is what people really want, just as Franklin Roosevelt, in part of his 1933 Inaugural Address, said the people of America needed "action, and action now." Whether your candidate won or lost, the steps to take are the same because, as noted, only God can impact the hearts of people. Here are steps to take, with one more major one discussed at the end since it wound up going a lot longer than I'd planned.

A Few Ways To Come Together

1. Pray without ceasing. The Bible says to "Pray without ceasing"(1 Thess.5:17), which means we must always be in an attitude of prayer. Of course, as noted, one's heart has to be right first, instead of harboring sin in one's heart one should confess and forsake it. However, otherwise, we must pray that God's will be done. That will is first and foremost to bring others to Jesus.

2. Stand against the world's system. The world's system is one that ignores God. It is people who want to do whatever they want to anyone they want, instead of Jesus' rule of doing to others whatever you would have them do to you.(Matt. 7:12) That can mean getting rid of cable TV or not subscribing to certain things. The world's system will one day keep anyone from buying or selling unless they have a mark that causes them to swear allegiance to the antichrist, and you must NEVER TAKE THE MARK.

3. Ignore attempts to divide and unite under the cross. Galatians 3:28 says we are all equal before the cross. There is so much division in America, and in the world, because we focus on it. Yes, I've posted before how to heal it numerous times. And, yes, we do have things we need to discuss, like how to end senseless violence and how to solve still inadequate housing and so on There is still discrimination.

     However, the division is being fanned by those who want to create strife, and we shouldn't allow that to happen. People of every race, creed, and color need to sit down and accept that we have problems and isntead of complaining, actually discuss ways to solve things rather than just slogans.

4. Trust God to solve those problems. When the disciples had problems in Acts, they prayed. Then, they let the Holy Spirit move in the situation  and followed His leading. We cans till do that today.
     It might seem like a huge task, but if we each start by reaching one person and trying to achieve a solution, God can use us. We may be spiraling out of control in our eyes, but in God's He still has control and as we rush toward the End Times, he can still bring revival.

The only way we can do this  is by celebrating the fact there are differences between us, but we are all special to God.

Celebrate diversity while rejecting sin

One big thing one can do is something all sides should.

First, of course, sound doctrine is vital for the same reason directions on how to get to Miami must be followed in order to get to Miami; you can go to Anchorage, Alaska and upon arrival say you're in Miami; and you sure better not try wearing a bathing suit in the winter. :-) Here is a good summary of that sound doctrine, complete with some good radio show links on different aspects; this is also good on what to unify on.

God requires mercy and not sacrifice. (Micah 6:8, Hosea 6:6, Matthew 9:13) We are called the body of Christ because every part of the body has different roles. However, if a person as no arms and must use feet to eat - yes, it can be done, as John Foppe has shown - that doesn't diminish value, it just means that part of the body must functions differently. Sadly, we have often failed to show it - I mentioned earlier we need to repent not only for things we've done but for things we should have done but didn't, such as not preaching against violence against women.

This is part of a larger problem. We must show others the love of Christ by being Christ-like. However, in previous years, honesty, marital fidelity, and other things were givens. We knew that stealing, lying, cheating, etc. were wrong. So, we must still stand against sin. We must simply do so in a loving way, helping people understand why God's way is best.

A good example of this is in families. We must accept single moms lead some families and love and support and help them. We must do the same for those like the Shunemmite woman, whom God calls great(2 Kings 4:8), who must lead because a husband can't or won't, or like Mordecai raising Esther. People from nuclear families must stop acting superior and show love and acceptance - and help the children of any situation. As I note in this free blogbook, the Shunemmite woman is a model for anyone to be a Godly leader, especially women and kids in a home without one.

At the same time, we must stand against sin. The Bible praises those like the Shunemmite because she put God at the center of her life, but it also condemns sexual sin.  We can praise and support those like the Shunemmite or single parents who follow the Lord with all their heart while still taking a stand against immoral lifestyles. The Bible calls sex outside of marriage a sin, and also says men and women were created to be unique and work together. He created the physical relationship to be only the cherry on top of the sundae of marriage, which was ordained to allow people to be fruitful and multiply, for the man and the woman to complete each other in a tenderhearted way without abuse by either party in any way. (Hence the warning that you should be so lost in God that your future partner needs to be seeking God with all their heart to find you; many bad things can happen when you are unequally yoked with unbelievers.)

The point is that within the boundaries God created - which are for our own protection - there can be diversity. We must accept as equal those like single parents or those who are very different. For instance, a tough guy or gal who gets hurt for fun and a docile, bookish doctor who sews them up can be very different even as kids. We must rely on the Holy Spirit to handle each effectively; children need boundaries but some need harsher discipline than others; some are hypersensitive, etc.. If it's not something involving the doctrines needed for salvation, people should "be of one mind in the Lord" like Euodice and Syntyche are told (Philippians 4:2-3), agreeing to disagree agreeably and not call each other names. Pray for each other to rely on the Holy Spirit to make Godly decisions with His leading, and pray nobody is traumatized, since God doesn't want people to traumatize each other. He wants us to walk away when too angry, so we don't sin(Eph.4:26); we must employ the fruits of the Spirit.(Gal.5:22-23) such as meekness(power under control), gentleness, etc..

As a hypersensitive who judged "bad behavior kids" and adults harshly before I trusted Christ as my Saviour, I'm reminding myself here. If someone talks mean, they might really hurt inside, like a fellow high school student I was asked to mentor. I did so with no questions asked. He taunted me for being so much nicer on my own without needing told... Well, I'll leave it there and say he had lots of issues - though he says now he was being sarcastic, which I can't read, and he is a Godly, caring person - so likely people don't look down on those like me, though I still have times I hope others accept and like me. Some people need it explained how to respond nicely. All the more reason to be forgiving and discuss one's feelings and accept each other.

Communicating with each other is vital

That communication is vital. God created us to be conversational and to learn while growing more understanding and accepting, because we are supposed to love one another and be known by that.(John 13:35)

That requires that we show a Godly example to others. I couldn't have helped the guy I mentioned above had I not been following the Lord, and while I was ridiculed for it by him because he struggled to accept that there were kind, gentle people in the world, eventually it paid off. (It would have been better had I had a road map, but I struggle verbalizing things at times as well as reading nonverbal stuff - I've had Middle school-aged kids tell me they'd have had all sorts of red flags going up in their minds if asked to include a new student in stuff with their friends, etc.)

However, I can laugh at my inability now. It's frustrating and sad that we don't communicate much as a country. The amount of corruption is a huge problem, and one that some people might not want revealed. So, for them it might be best to write them off and simply pray for them.

However, God can still change hearts. When we turn to Him with all our heart and accept each other while still rejecting sins like cruelty, corruption, lying, cheating, physical relations outside mrriage, etc. - all of which really boil down to selfishness and idolatry - then we can see God start to create real change.

Because, no matter who had won, the only real change can come from the Lord. Let us allow Him to help us to reach out and talk about those concerns and work together for solutions.