It’s that time of year. Nutmeg and cinnamon are coming out of their cupboards, the last maple and cottonwood leaves are falling, frost is creeping into the shadows, and political ads carpet-bomb every imaginable media platform.

Sinister voices prompt us to vote for candidate A or candidate B with promises of apocalyptic nightmares should we choose wrongly. Children will die! Puppies will suffer! A new Ice Age will cover the earth!

It was hard to miss this week that the emotions and reasoning being targeted by political ads (across the whole political rainbow) are the same cocktail of grumbling-inducing vices that Israel succumbed to so often in the wilderness. Be afraid! Vent your frustration! Time for outrage! But the children!

Politics is a calculus of power using the currency of human nature. Something is missing from that formula. I haven’t heard a political ad yet that acknowledges the single most important and ultimately determinative factor in every political equation: the sovereignty of God.

In a political desert where there seems to be no water in the land – God is in control. In a season of political blessings where we enjoy peace and prosperity – God is in control.

When the votes don’t go our preferred way, we are presented with a test of faith. When the votes do go our preferred way, we are also presented with a test of faith.

Vote in faith this November. It is a privilege to be a part of the political process in our nation, and we should take advantage of the privilege. But use that privilege as an opportunity to demonstrate prayerful faith in God. Do not grumble. Pray. Do not fear. Trust. Do not worry. Vote with a clear conscience.

How easy it is, whether talking about Spokane, Olympia, or Washington D.C., to directly or indirectly suggest that Yahweh is not among us. The politics of grumbling is as old as the Exodus. Grumbling about politics dates back at least that far too. Let’s head towards Thanksgiving with the peaceful gratitude of responsible faith that should mark the people of God.

As a quick way to orient our hearts in the right direction, consider taking a minute to work through the following exercise:

What are five concerns you have with our country, state, or city that you can pray about to the God who hears?

What are five blessings you enjoy presently that God has brought about through our civil government for which you can give Him thanks?

The God who draws pastry from sand and water from stone can, and will, glorify Himself and care for His children. I’ll be voting for a lot of people this November, and I hope you will too, but you won’t find Yahweh on the ballot. Our God holds permanent office over all the affairs of men, and it’s comforting to remember that no matter how an election turns out, not a single puppy will so much as whimper apart from God’s control.