Why would a magazine on Spirit-led living write about an election and put Donald Trump on the cover? It’s because I believe there is spiritual warfare going on that concerns much more than who is elected in November. As I wrote in an article in this issue, and as I’ve documented in the books I’ve written, the opposition to Donald Trump is so anti-God that we can’t be silent and hope the threat to our freedom and religious liberty will go away.
I am unashamedly pro-Donald Trump, and I’m using all our platforms to get out the message about why to vote for him. But there is a spiritual aspect we must include: prayer.
The Bible says to “pray for those who are in authority, that we may live a quiet and peaceful life in all godliness” (1 Tim. 2:2b). Elsewhere it says to seek God first, and “all these things” will be added to you (Matt. 6:33). It’s hard to document and measure spiritual things, but millions of people have been praying in groups large and small, believing for a shift in the very serious situation in America.
Traditionally most Pentecostals and charismatics have stood on the sidelines when it came to politics and often even the “cultural wars.” Our focus was on spirituality and living a righteous life—both important in a time when the culture is becoming more ungodly. We must be an example to the world. And we must exercise spiritual authority by praying. If we don’t, who will?
We must also discern the times and see what God is doing and what the Word says. Even Scriptures we know well such as 2 Chronicles 7:14 can seem confusing: “If My people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray, and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” What wicked ways? There are many obvious “sins” worldly people do that hopefully don’t apply to Spirit-filled Christians who are walking with the Lord.
My friend Mary Colbert, whom I know as a prayer warrior, told me the Lord showed her that one of the “wicked ways” is when believers do nothing. This was so insightful I included it in the chapter on prayer in my January 2020 release, God, Trump, and the 2020 Election. The answer comes from the Parable of the Talents (Matt. 25:14-30) in which two servants invested their talents and were called “good and faithful.” The third servant was afraid he’d get in trouble if he lost what he’d been given, so he did nothing. The master called him “wicked.” Mary believes Christians who “do nothing” because they fear being ridiculed as politically incorrect are “wicked” and must repent.
Pastor John Kilpatrick believes we are experiencing “spiritual warfare for the soul of this nation,” and he says, “It’s time to quit discussing things about the president. It’s time to quit discussing what’s going on in Washington—it’s time to start praying. The people of God need to pray right now.”
The Bible says, “Faith without works is dead” (James 2:26). So we can pray, but we must work, and we must vote. God calls His people to be “wise as serpents and harmless as doves” (Matt. 19:16b). We must be like the gentle Jesus even as we fight for the soul of our nation.
So I encourage you to register to vote, if you haven’t already, and encourage others to do so. Get involved in your local community and help turn the tide. I believe there is hope for the future. But we must act now. None of this matters if you don’t vote.
In God, Trump, and the 2020 Election, I quoted Dennis Prager, who may be the best Jewish friend to evangelicals in this country. He made this point: “So I don’t understand when Christians don’t vote. It’s a puzzle to me. I am told by my Christian friends that there [are] still Christians who just sit home on Election Day. So they benefit from all these people before them who fought for America and to have a country whose motto is ‘In God we trust’ [and] who maintained that motto. I mean, if you don’t [trust God], how do you defend Normandy Beach? These people didn’t just vote; they got blasted by Nazi machine guns. What would they have said? ‘Why bother? Why bother fighting a war?’ It’s the same thing [with voting].”
That generation rose up to meet the challenge. The question is: Will we? We cannot assume others will do it. Donald Trump can’t win without our help. Each of us must do our part. God demands no less.
Stephen Strang is founder of Charisma. He believes God, Trump and the 2020 Election (Charisma House), available wherever Christian books are sold, is his most important book. Listen to his new podcast by the same name on the Charisma Podcast Network.
This article was excerpted from the August issue of Charisma magazine. If you don’t subscribe to Charisma, click here to get every issue delivered to your mailbox. During this time of change, your subscription is a vote of confidence for the kind of Spirit-filled content we offer. In the same way you would support a ministry with a donation, subscribing is your way to support Charisma. Also, we encourage you to give gift subscriptions at shop.charismamag.com, and share our articles on social media.
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