February 18, 2025
Navigating Politics
In the last several weeks, I have had lots of emails, texts, phone calls, and personal conversations about the current political situation and what the Trump administration is proposing and implementing for our country.
Almost all of what people said was very negative about what our current president is doing and even how he might be abusing his office. Some of you are especially concerned about the effort to shut down funding that has gone to various Lutheran groups helping with the settlement of immigrants -- groups that we support like LIRS and LSS. This also concerns me.
And yet...according to recent approval ratings and the recent election, over half of the country is satisfied with what President Trump is doing and almost half the country (49.8%) voted for him. His approval rating has never been higher, and he is doing exactly what he said he would do.
But I have not had a single call from anyone favorable to what the current administration is up to. I’ve only heard from those who are frustrated, frightened, and concerned about the state of our nation.
Earle Bruce, former coach of the OSU Buckeyes, once told me that when his team was winning, he reminded them that they weren’t really as good as they thought they were. And when they lost a game, he reminded them that they weren’t really as bad as they thought they were.
So whether your team is winning or losing, it’s usually not as good or as bad as you might think. But I’m not on a team. I follow Jesus. And I will work in this church and in this world to do what I believe Jesus calls us to do. Some of that work is to stand with the poor and with refugees. Some of that work is to eliminate corruption and waste wherever it is found. Some of that work is to be kind and merciful and loving to all people.
So if any administration seeks to choose policies over people or special interests over justice, I intend to call them out and invite them to consider other alternatives.
But I’m not really so much interested in politics as I am in Jesus. We don’t have to name names and pick fights, we have the gospel.
The gospel itself is an affront to all those who would abuse or neglect God’s people or God’s creation.
When you hear me preach, you won’t hear me talking about the current president or any president, for that matter. You will hear me asking everyone to proclaim the good news of God in Jesus Christ, and then to live a life with all that that means.
I’m not responsible for what others do. I’m responsible for what I do.
Sometimes that means I have to stand up for what’s right. Sometimes it means I need to challenge the current authorities. Sometimes it means I need to pray for a better world and deeper commitments to the creation that God made.
But my final hope and trust is not in anything this world has to offer. My trust is in God who made the heaven and the earth and all that is in it.
Four years from now, we may look back and think the current administration did a great job. Or we may look back and see nothing but devastation and a dismantling of so many good things that had been in place. I don’t know exactly where we will be in four years.
But I do know that in four years we will still need to proclaim the gospel. We will still have work to do. And we will still be praying for a world in which the love of God in Christ Jesus is both heard and seen by all people.
In Christ,
Pastor John D. Morris
In the last several weeks, I have had lots of emails, texts, phone calls, and personal conversations about the current political situation and what the Trump administration is proposing and implementing for our country.
Almost all of what people said was very negative about what our current president is doing and even how he might be abusing his office. Some of you are especially concerned about the effort to shut down funding that has gone to various Lutheran groups helping with the settlement of immigrants -- groups that we support like LIRS and LSS. This also concerns me.
And yet...according to recent approval ratings and the recent election, over half of the country is satisfied with what President Trump is doing and almost half the country (49.8%) voted for him. His approval rating has never been higher, and he is doing exactly what he said he would do.
But I have not had a single call from anyone favorable to what the current administration is up to. I’ve only heard from those who are frustrated, frightened, and concerned about the state of our nation.
Earle Bruce, former coach of the OSU Buckeyes, once told me that when his team was winning, he reminded them that they weren’t really as good as they thought they were. And when they lost a game, he reminded them that they weren’t really as bad as they thought they were.
So whether your team is winning or losing, it’s usually not as good or as bad as you might think. But I’m not on a team. I follow Jesus. And I will work in this church and in this world to do what I believe Jesus calls us to do. Some of that work is to stand with the poor and with refugees. Some of that work is to eliminate corruption and waste wherever it is found. Some of that work is to be kind and merciful and loving to all people.
So if any administration seeks to choose policies over people or special interests over justice, I intend to call them out and invite them to consider other alternatives.
But I’m not really so much interested in politics as I am in Jesus. We don’t have to name names and pick fights, we have the gospel.
The gospel itself is an affront to all those who would abuse or neglect God’s people or God’s creation.
When you hear me preach, you won’t hear me talking about the current president or any president, for that matter. You will hear me asking everyone to proclaim the good news of God in Jesus Christ, and then to live a life with all that that means.
I’m not responsible for what others do. I’m responsible for what I do.
Sometimes that means I have to stand up for what’s right. Sometimes it means I need to challenge the current authorities. Sometimes it means I need to pray for a better world and deeper commitments to the creation that God made.
But my final hope and trust is not in anything this world has to offer. My trust is in God who made the heaven and the earth and all that is in it.
Four years from now, we may look back and think the current administration did a great job. Or we may look back and see nothing but devastation and a dismantling of so many good things that had been in place. I don’t know exactly where we will be in four years.
But I do know that in four years we will still need to proclaim the gospel. We will still have work to do. And we will still be praying for a world in which the love of God in Christ Jesus is both heard and seen by all people.
In Christ,
Pastor John D. Morris