Still in Your hand

Well, November 8, 2016 is now in the history books. For some, they will claim it is the greatest day of victory. Others will claim it is the greatest day of calamity. There will be doom and gloom. The markets will react. Pundits will pund (if that is a word). Commentators will commentate. There will be folks dancing. There will be folks crying.

Is this the end of America? Is it the return to a true America? Each will have their feelings about it. Each will claim that they are correct. If only...you fill in the sentence. There will be those who are full of hope for a better future. There will be those who are sure that the future is ruined.

Me, I see us right where we were before the election. In the hand of the Lord. I am not talking about the leaders of the country. I am not talking about a political party. I am talking about each of us, people who are in need of a Lord who watches over us and is with us in all that we do. We are in the hand of the Father. "I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand." (John 10:28-29 ESV) There is where I find comfort. I found comfort in those words prior to the election. I find comfort in those words after the election. I never put my confidence in either candidate. I put my confidence in my Lord Jesus Christ.

Many in the land of Israel cried out in fear over the situation of their nation. It was going downhill quickly. Some would cry out. Some would accept. Some would see no problems at all. As you read through the history of the Old Testament, you realize that even in the direst of times, God was still the God of His people, even as they turned their back on Him. Even when they would not look to Him for guidance, He still guided them. He even disciplined them because of their sins. Yet He was still their God and they were still His people.

I do not claim that America is the new Israel. That would be wrong. I believe that those who hold Christ in their heart and follow Him in their lives are the people of God. They are sinners. They turn from Him over and over again. They love Him and then follow the temptation of the devil, the world and their own sinful nature. They return to God in repentance. They receive forgiveness. They have the Holy Spirit guiding them with the blessed Means of Grace - Word and Sacraments. Nothing has changed. Nothing.

But...you will say. Trump was elected. Some claim he is the savior of the nation. Others claim him to be the destruction of the nation. Which is right? Neither. The only Savior is Jesus Christ. No man can claim that for himself nor should that be given to any man. That is idolatry. That is wrong. Neither is one man the source of destruction. That is sin, sin in each one of us. Sin that turns from God to accept the sinful actions and desires of the heart is that destruction.

In the end, the only hope is found in Jesus Christ. Will America collapse? I don't know. It is possible. Will it become great again? I don't know. It is possible. I do not claim to know what the future holds. But I do know the One who holds the future. It isn't Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton. It is Jesus Christ. We are still in His hand, that is, as long as we do not leave behind our faith in Him.

What do we need to do? The same thing we needed to do before the election. Return to the Lord with our whole heart. Trust in God in all things. Lift up our leaders in prayer. And turn from our sins. Nope, there is nothing new under the sun. The needs are the same. The Savior is the same.

We are still in His hand.