There is a Savior. [Insert Elected Official Name Here] Ain't It!

Here I am again, entering the political foray. It's not my traditional arena for sharing, but given how crazy things have gotten, I feel I must once again enter the arena. I wrote back in 2016 about why I voted third party, and while I have not yet firmly made my voting decisions for this year, I can tell you that I am still very disappointed in both party's candidates. I will also tell you that I am 100% percent convinced that neither candidate will save America.

Others have written more eloquently about why neither of the original candidates for president this year stood for Christian ideals. (See O. Alan Noble, 2024; I would agree it is still the case) I am not here to tell people who to vote for based on that statement. Rather, I am going to agree with Professor O. Alan Noble that voters need to hold their candidates accountable for bad, wrong, and sinful policies. I also think that Christian voters need to hold themselves accountable.

As Christians, we say that we believe in a sovereign King, yet we, like the Israelites, demand a man or woman to lead us. We are very blessed with the governmental and religious freedom we have in America, but our government is imperfect, stained by the sin from which all mankind suffers, and from which all mankind needs a Savior.

There is a Savior, and He lives in heaven, not on earth. When we tout a candidate like he or she is the be-all, end-all, I argue that we border on, or even indulge in idolatry. We need to hold ourselves accountable for that. We act like our politicians are going to save America, save us. Sorry. That's been done, by Jesus. Hard stop. One day, every knee will bow, and it will be to Jesus, not to a sovereign (1 Tim 2:1-4; Phil 2:10). The only time all things will be right is when He comes back to rule and to reign. 

Pray for our leaders (1 Tim 2:1-4). Scriptures command us to do so. Vote for whom you want, whether a party candidate, or a write-in. When you do, however, hold yourself accountable to keeping that sovereign in his or her proper place. Only Jesus reigns supreme. Nothing will shake Him, not an elected official, or an election. There is a Savior, and [insert elected official name here] ain't it!

Reference:

O. Alan Noble. (2024, July 5). So you've decided to vote for an unfit candidate. You are not your own. https://newsletter.oalannoble.com/p/so-youve-decided-to-vote-for-an-unfit

There is a Savior.

My mom had (thankfully minor) surgery last week. I sat at work in a situation where I desperately wanted some word of help to offer, but had none. I watched my husband continue to soldier on under an immense weight of work that I wanted to help bear, but could not. I wanted to be a savior, but I wasn't.

The Spirit had to remind me, over and over again, that there is a Savior, and I'm not it. My mom has a Savior. His name is Jesus, and He is more than able to care for her needs. I have no word of my own, but I have the name of Jesus. I have no ability to help, but I have a Jesus on whom I can call. Praise Him!

There is a Savior. There is a Savior. There is a Savior! I have no help to give. One of His names is Helper. I am powerless, but He is powerful. I am unable. He is able. Praise the mighty name of Jesus!

Two Little Letters

I am a helper. It's my job, and I also think it's part of my spiritual gifting and calling. But helping has its struggles. Lately, I've felt so burdened by its weight. So many people. So many causes. So many needs. I just can't manage it all. And that's because I can't. I've been realizing that in the midst of this all, I can care, but I can't save. I never consciously told myself I had saving abilities, but somehow I was acting like it. The words caring and saving differ by only two little letters, but in actual living, they differ greatly.

Caring and saving are both verbs. They are both actions. They differ greatly in motivation, however. I show care because I value someone, because I like or love them, because I want to help. I try to save when I think too much of my own abilities, when I am afraid, when I don't think I can survive if that person isn't save. Care comes from a place of peace and calm and trust in God. Saving comes from a place of not trusting God and thinking that I have to be God.

Care includes care for myself and others, so that I can sustain the work. Saving is often a panic grasping at straws to try to get something done, most often for others, without much focus on if the action is healthy for me, or for them. Caring is about sustaining. Saving is about survival, which puts me into survival brain.

S for C. V for R. The differences are slight in spelling, but immense in functioning. I am not made for saving the world. There is one Savior, and I am not it. Instead of grasping at straws, may I submit all my straws to Him and trust Him to fill my cup and sustain those I love. I simply don't have what it takes.

Sugar Free January? Absolutely Not!

Many of you know that I prefer to be a person of balance. I don't like diets or absolutes or restrictions. I prefer to be intuitive. But this January, after seeing the challenge on Pinch of Yum, I decided to go off sugar, like absolutely. I don't normally eat a lot of sugar to begin with, andnd I usually prefer to sweeten with honey or maple syrup if I can. But I'd noticed myself getting a lot more attracted to sweets, to the point that I realized I was looking to food for comfort, instead of to Jesus my Savior.

So I cut sugar out. I stopped taking chewable vitamins that contained sugar. I checked every condiment I used at home and if it had sugar, I left it off or out (think Worchestershire, sriracha, mustard, etc.) I tried to skip food I knew could have sugar when eating food at work (bread, salad dressing, etc.) I didn't eat homemade bread I made that had a little sugar for sweetener, and I certainly the cookies I made for my husband. I thought I was doing pretty good.

And then I heard on a podcast that table salt contains sugar. I panicked. What? I'd worked so hard to avoid sugar, but I hadn't avoided salt. I'd used it both in recipes and at the table. I went home and checked the label and sure enough, there is dextrose (aka sugar) in iodized table salt. Why? I googled it, and it turns out dextrose is a preservative. So I'd been eating sugar all along, albeit in small amounts.

I was tempted after gaining that knowledge to give up my sugar fast, but I'm stubborn, and I didn't. I wanted to cave again when it got to be January 31st and I made cookies for my husband. Why not indulge? It was the last day of January anyway. But I stuck to my guns. I wanted to binge eat (a negative side effect of fasting) everything sugar (chocolate, cake, cookies, etc.)on the first of February, but by God's grace, I just enjoyed some of this lemon chocolate chip cake.

So what did I learn from Sugar Free January?

-Sugar is in a lot of things.
-Living in a world of absolutes is really difficult, if not impossible. (I can only imagine what it is like for people who absolutely have to avoid certain foods due to allergies.)
-Sometimes when I want sugar, I am just hungry.
-I am capable of finding snacks that taste good or meet a need and don't contain sugar.
-Reintroducing sugar (so far) has really had no ill effects. I just feel best when I eat sugar after I have other food in my stomach (which I already know, but had reinforced by this challenge/experiment/fast).

My biggest takeaway:

Sugar isn't really as evil as some people make it out to be.

Sugar isn't the be all, end all. It's A comfort, not THE comfort. It can be an extreme, but it doesn't have to be. It's a preservative and a flavor enhancer, so it actually has uses. I won't die or even feel that bad if I eat it (or don't).

All in all, Sugar Free January was a good reminder to me to let God be God, people be people, and allow balance to fluctuate in its meaning. 

Maybe I'm stirring up a hornet's nest with saying I don't believe sugar is evil. But I don't. I believe sugar is a good gift from God that's meant to be enjoyed in moderation (1 Tim 4:4; Jam 1:17). May I partake of it as such.