I’m sure this headline grabbed your attention, and that’s exactly what it’s meant to do. Growing up in a small town in rural Mississippi, I spent most Sunday mornings at Pachuta Baptist Church. While I’ve made my share of mistakes, those were my own choices—I was raised to know right from wrong. Those lessons from sitting in those pews have stayed with me throughout my life.
I share this because I am a born-again Christian, with Jesus Christ as my Savior. So, I know without a doubt that God is not dead. But you might not believe that if you spent any time in Washington, D.C.
I spent a couple of decades involved in national politics in Washington, working on campaigns for both Democrats and Republicans across the country. Eventually, I returned to my conservative roots and moved back to my home state of Mississippi.
I mention this because, during all my years in D.C., working on both sides of the aisle, do you know what I rarely ever heard? God. That’s right—I mean it. The men and women elected to make crucial decisions on our behalf, for our future, hardly ever look to God for guidance.
Just take a look at the environment we live in today. Watch the daily news. Our country left God out of its plans a long time ago. We see Democrats fighting to keep abortion legal while Republicans push to make it illegal. We have a Democratic nominee for President who, as far as I can recall, has never mentioned God in any of her speeches, except for the usual “God bless the United States of America” at the end. But that’s about as far as God gets mentioned in political conversations in Washington.
To be completely honest, I haven’t seen our own nominee, Donald J. Trump, talk about God much either. Trump often discusses his goals and ambitions, but I’ve never heard him mention seeking God’s guidance on any issue. I’m not criticizing Trump—he’s got my vote in November. What I’m pointing out is that leaving God out of political conversations, debates, and decisions has become the norm for both parties. During all my years in Washington, I never saw a meeting begin with a prayer asking for God’s direction— not even once in over two decades.
I get so tired of hearing talking heads argue that our Founding Fathers wanted a strict separation between Church and State. While it’s true that they desired this separation, it’s often misunderstood. After fighting a war with England to gain independence from a country where the King was also the head of the Church, their primary goal was to keep the government out of the Church—not to exclude the Church from influencing government. This idea has been used as a convenient excuse by professional politicians to follow their own agendas without ever seeking guidance from God.
I’ve often thought how powerful it would be if our Republican Party nominated someone like Franklin Graham for President. I’m certain that he would start every meeting, every day, by seeking the Lord’s will on whatever issue was at hand. Our country is in a tough spot right now, and we desperately need true Christian leadership in the House, the Senate, and yes, in the Oval Office too.
But we didn’t nominate Franklin Graham, and that’s because the political game in Washington doesn’t work that way. Franklin hasn’t “paid his dues” in the political arena, and he hasn’t spent years currying favor with the right people in the capital. But he has done something far more important—he’s committed his life to serving the Lord God. We need to elect men and women of faith who aren’t intimidated by the Washington establishment. Leaders who will boldly stand up for Christ and won’t shy away from their faith, but instead embrace it for all to see, showing that they serve God above all else, even the coveted seats of power in today’s Washington.
Right now, our nation is facing a $35 trillion debt. We’re involved in supporting at least two wars, with a third one looming on the horizon. Violent crime is skyrocketing across much of our country. We have countless illegal immigrants crossing our borders daily. The majority of the Democrat party believes it’s acceptable and should be their legal right to end the life of an unborn child, which is Christ’s perfect gift. Murderers are receiving 10-year sentences, with the death penalty rarely enforced. We have pedophiles harming our children and trading images and videos of their crimes like we once traded baseball cards. Yes, if ever there was a time for our country to turn back to God, that time is NOW.
In closing, let me circle back to the title I used to grab your attention. From what I’ve shared here, it should be clear that I firmly believe our God isn’t dead at all. He is very much alive and active in the hearts and souls of His people. But the truth is, there are far too many people in this world who are not “His people.” Unfortunately for us, we’ve elected a great many of those individuals who don’t truly belong to Him. We keep re-electing them, election after election, even as our country and world seem to fall apart more each day.
Now is the time to demand that those running for public office are true Christians, even before asking if they’re Democrat or Republican. If we want to see real change in Washington, it won’t come from electing Harris or Trump in November. The only one who can truly turn our country around is God above. But our Lord is a God of free will—He leaves that choice up to each of us. If we want to revive God’s presence in our government, we must ensure that the people we elect have their hearts and souls anchored in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, not just candidates who speak well and raise a lot of money. If we keep sending those types to D.C., God will remain absent in Washington. We simply can’t keep sending the same ole people to Washington, but expect a different outcome. The responsibility is ours. What will you do to help bring God back into our Capitol?
