Day Ninety-Three

YOUR COUNTRY

Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.

—ROMANS 13:1 ESV

I’m writing this at a weird point in American history. Donald Trump just got elected as president of the United States, and the country is full of a lot of people who are unhappy about this. (And many who are happy, to be fair.)

Some are unhappy because they didn’t want him to be the president. Some voted for him, but only because they felt like they didn’t have a better choice. And even his supporters aren’t totally over the moon because they’re dealing with outrage from the other side. No one is terribly happy, it seems.

The nation is very split right now, but when we look to God’s Word, we see that brave people trust God with who is or isn’t in authority over them.

The day after Trump won, Late Show host Stephen Colbert said something like this: your country is like your family—you don’t just get to leave when you’re unhappy.

Brave people trust God with who is or isn’t in authority over them.

What does that mean for you? Are you an American who wishes your country were different? Or maybe you live in a country where Christians are outright persecuted?

No matter what your country’s government looks like right now, you can be brave in it.

What does it look like to be brave enough to stay or brave enough to respect your country even if you don’t agree with everything your country’s leadership is doing?

Being brave looks like prayer. It looks like praying for your leaders to come to Christ. It looks like loving the people in your country and sticking to your biblical values.

No matter what the political state of things may be as you read this book, you can be brave in it. Carry on, friend.

BE BRAVE: Pray for the leadership of your country.