Florida Recounts

Well Florida, you’ve done it again. It took about fifteen years for people to stop making “recount” jokes to me when they discover I’m from the Sunshine State, and now your inability to tabulate ballots has hit the reset button on all that. Because of Florida in the 2000 Presidential Election we learned what a chad is (the circular part of the ballot punched out when voting), as well as every way it can be improperly removed (dimpled, hanging, swinging, pregnant). The Gore Lieberman ticket, dubbed the “Sore Loserman” ticket, made headlines for their demands for more and more recounts. Images of election officials holding ballots up to the light, trying to determine if a vote cast for Pat Buchanan was intended to be a vote for Gore, dominated the headlines for weeks, as America waited to see who would ultimately become the forty-third President of the United States.

Now in 2018 it is Tallahassee mayor Andrew Gillum refusing to concede in the gubernatorial contest against Ron de Santis, and Congressman Bill Nelson doing the same in his bid for re-election against the current governor Rick Scott. Boxes of provisional ballots (which are normally fake ballots or those cast by people pretending to be someone else) are turning up in the trunk of rental cars, school cafeterias, and broom closets. Cries of “voter fraud” and “stolen elections” are heard on social media and the nightly news. Georgia has a similar problem as Stacey Abrams refused to concede to Brian Kemp in their struggle to become governor.

In all three races, the candidate who refused to concede eventually lost after the dust from the provisional ballots had settled. Determining voter intent, counting dimpled chads as a vote, and producing ballots out of thin air did not help the loser become a winner. Losing a close election is hard (I know!), and it is worth making sure everyone got it right, but the numbers don’t lie. After the polls have closed, it is too late.

The Bible tells us we each have an appointment with death, and then is the judgment (Hebrews 9:27). Those who never put their trust in Jesus will hear the chilling words, “I never knew you; depart from me, you who practices lawlessness. (Matthew 7:23).” If that is you, you won’t like the verdict, but the polls will be closed. No demanding recounts, no refusal to concede will change the results of what has happened. A candidate who wants to be victorious on election day must do the work while there is still time, and anyone who wants a home in heaven must do what they need to do now while there is still time. If you have not done so, repent of your sins, put your faith in Jesus Christ, and begin a new life with Him today.   

Hope

We are less than a week from the presidential (and all the other) elections, and one word that we often hear associated with elections is hope.

“I hope he wins.”

“I hope he is re-elected.”

“I hope she is a good governor.”

“I hope he can get us out of this mess.”

“I hope she can balance the budget.”

We are filled with hope about the outcomes, as well as with the people involved. It is ok to have hope, but we need to remember that, ultimately, presidents, pastors, parents, politicians, and people in general will let us down at some point. Promises, no matter how well intentioned, get broken.

Others put their hope in themselves. I can do better. I’ll get it right next time. I’m getting the hang of this. I have a good work ethic. Still, though, hoping in ourselves will only end in disappointment when we eventually fail ourselves.

There is a small, often neglected book in the Old Testament called Lamentations. In the book’s third chapter, verse twenty-six, we read, “It is good that a person should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord.” This verse shows us a better place to invest our hope.

In a world where people will fail us and we will fail ourselves, there is One who will never let us down, and His name is Jesus. This goes beyond fixing our country or bettering our situation, for Jesus offers us “the salvation of the Lord.”

Who or what are you hoping in today? Is your hope in some other person—maybe the fact that your parents or grandparents were Christians? Is your hope in yourself—the fact that you are a pretty good person? When it comes to God’s salvation, no person is sufficient to save you.

Place your hope in Jesus, the sinless Son of God who did for you what you could never do for yourself. Depend on His sacrifice on the cross, not the sins you have sacrificed. Trust in His goodness, not your good deeds.

Have you experienced the salvation of the Lord? I hope so.