By Juli Martinez, Contributing Writer
I don’t expect you to agree with everything or possibly anything I’ve written. I also don’t speak for all Christians or even conservatives in their entirety. I do implore you to read this with an open mind and with respect, if you truly intend to understand where a lot of Christians and conservatives are coming from, and why they vote for and support a man so many call “evil” and “vile.”
First, you have to look at the foundation of who Christians are, the morals and principles that they stand for, and know that they don’t vote for a person; they often vote for policy or a person who will ensure morals and integrity are instituted. They vote biblically. If they believe abortion is murder, which fundamental and evangelical Christians do, then they will be hard pressed to vote for a candidate who is pro-choice. Because conservatism primarily is pro-life, a good many evangelicals are Republican, but recently, a larger crowd won’t, or no longer, call themselves Republicans; they call themselves conservatives and vote accordingly, not according to party lines. Regardless, they vote for Trump because he is pro-life. He also stands for a lot of conservative values, regardless of whether he was a Democrat or a Republican prior to running for office.
Secondly, they are a forgiving lot. They don’t tend to hold grudges, and when you see despicable remarks made 14 years ago by someone who had no intention of running for President, they’re able to forgive and move on. They’re able to look at the human, see frailty and sin, overlook it in the form of grace and mercy, pray for them, then look at policy, action and what they do for the country and the individuals who make up this great nation. This doesn’t mean they agree with every word that comes out of his mouth, or every tweet or social media post, but when it comes down to action and following through on what he says, Christians take note.
Christians are a prayerful lot, and more-so recently than ever, due to the alleged election fraud rampant in 7 contested states. They rally to a candidate who stands for religious freedoms and will fight for them when push comes to shove. There’s a saying in conservative circles, and it’s ringing truer than ever today: there are four things you don’t mess with- my family, my freedom, my country, my religion. What you may be witnessing today, if you’ve seen what’s been touted as the “silent majority” rising up, is people whose family, freedom, country, religion, or any combination of the four, has been violated. They back a President who will stand up publicly and demand governors open churches if Costco and Walmart remain open. They fully support the one who says he wants formerly closed churches open by Easter, one of the holiest days in Christendom, and also one of the highest attended days of the year in churches across the US who believe in Jesus. They support a President who won’t interfere in government at the local level but allows the states to govern themselves, so they won’t be ruled by a dictator at the highest level. They support a President who stands for families making informed and best choices for themselves, not being dictated to by overlords who have gone bonkers on power trips.
Because a good portion of conservatives are Christians or faith-based, they take a lot of what they see on faith, and take it to their prayer closets to pray for the intended outcome. This is not to excuse bad behavior along the way, but when presented with two evils, they pray God will use the one standing for godly principles in authority for His purposes, just as they did for the liberal candidate sworn in previous to our current President. They pray for Trump to be used by God and when Trump is seen making godly decisions, this is a direct answer to their prayers. They are a strong community who network and share, and their faith is an integral part of their everyday lives; the two are not mutually exclusive.
Conservative Christians also believe in repentance and the ability to do a 180 in life, and look for fruit on the tree. When President Trump was campaigning, he called in a large contingent of pastors to guide him, speak godly wisdom into his life and pray over and for him, and counsel him. No other modern-day President has done this, and it’s not been documented that any sitting President continued to be counseled by a contingent of evangelical pastors and leaders throughout their term, as Trump has. While the current President may shoot off at the mouth, and probably is more prolific on social media than any other President in history, he has not made the comments of his past. He has not disparaged women. He has raised successful and respectful children and grandchildren. He has followed through on more campaign promises than both his democratic and republican predecessors.
He’s done things no other President has been able to accomplish- striking multiple Middle East peace accords, ensured the US did not go to war in the 4 years he served as our leader. He stopped what looked like a sure-fire conflict with North Korea- in fact, Democrats promised if he was elected, he would start the war with North Korea, when in fact he was the first President to meet with the leader of the DPRK and effectively struck a peace deal, not war. He built up the armed forces that were decimated under the previous administration and created a new branch, the Space Force. He strengthened the economy, in fact, the stock markets saw highs multiple times in the last 4 years, breaking records even during a global pandemic. Prior to the pandemic, he lowered the unemployment rate lower than it has been.
Conservative Christians look for a strong leader, someone who will not say one thing and do another, but will do what they say, and they’ve found that in President Trump. They’re looking for a President who will fight when the enemy comes knocking, whether foreign or domestic, who will stand for truth and liberty, and will defend the constitution of the United States. They’re supporting a candidate and a President who backs and defends their liberties given to them constitutionally and according to the Bill of Rights. They look to the Rule of Law.
Christians are taught not to look at the outside, but look at the heart, and when they look at Donald Trump, all they see is heart. They see a man who loves his family, loves his country, loves his freedom, and loves his new-found religion. They see a man who has grit and is not afraid to fight. They see a man who won’t back down. They see a man who while vilified like no other President in our history by the media and talking heads, is loved by the people who voted for him. They see a man who is able to easily rally more than a million people from across the nation during a global pandemic to come to the nation’s Capitol and stand up to make sure their voices are heard when they believe justice is violated.
Christians see a fallible man, who needs grace and mercy just as badly, if not more, than they do, who leads this country with passion and a zeal for justice that hasn’t been seen since Ronald Reagan, who isn’t afraid of politicians and hasn’t been bought in one form or another. While a lot of what may come out of his mouth is hot air, a lot of what he is in politics is a breath of fresh air, because he isn’t a career politician. When the conservatives call for the draining of the swamp, they look to President Trump to lead, because he isn’t entrenched as so many others are.
Christians are in no way calling our President perfect or infallible, but they are angry at the way he’s been disrespected, shunned by the media and the left for four years. The First Lady is the first to never grace the cover of a US magazine as FLOTUS, simply because of who her husband is, and yet she’s a supermodel. Irony? They’ve had to turn to alternative sources for news because mainstream news refuses to report on anything that doesn’t fit the leftist agenda, or they spin it so much it’s a distorted semblance of the truth, and Christians are fed up. Trump is the only President to call the media on it and demand integral reporting. Then, when they cite a source outside of MSM, they’re ridiculed for reading untrustworthy sources, while all they’re doing is seeking truth in reporting- heck, simply reporting.
If you’ve read this far, I applaud you, as most these days won’t have a respectful debate, let alone hear what the other side is saying. Communication is one of the only things that will bridge this great divide, and it’s been utterly decimated in the past months. We must stop the vitriol, the hatred, the name calling. On all sides.
Conservatives and Christians have now accepted the term “deplorable” as status quo. They’re no longer offended when they’re called racist or bigot, sexist or misogynist. These terms have instead become synonymous with patriot, warrior, pray-er, constitutionalist, truth-seeker. They see a man, fallible and sinful, just as they are, and know they are no better than he. They don’t judge their deeds against his and expect to come out shining in comparison.
This is a sad day in America, but as so many have been doing for months, years, even, they’ll take this with them back to their prayer closets, get down on their knees, beseech the throne room of heaven, and pray God will hear and answer their prayers for the man who has led the charge in the fight to make America great again.
So Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God.”
Mark 10:18
