Attention Word Slingers readers: Beginning December 11, 2019, all posts will be available at BaptistMessenger.com. Thank you for reading Word Slingers!

Donald Trump has rocketed into the political atmosphere, sending shockwaves across not only the Republican Party, but across a nation, looking for a political identity, and a watching world wondering what America’s role in an increasingly volatile world will be.

In recent history, no candidate has been as polarizing as Donald Trump. For the increasing and hardening number of blogs, articles, rallies and vocalized concern against him, Mr. Trump’s numbers continually rise, and his delegate count is on course to grab the Republican nomination.

According to the data, the meteor that is Donald Trump’s candidacy is not going to flame out in a trail of vapor as many assumed. Rather, it is very likely going to hit earth.

And what will be the fallout?

That is a question many Republicans are beginning to seriously consider. As every candidate has voiced, this is an extremely pivotal election not only for Americans, but for the direction of the free world.

Donald Trump is a brazen man with limited expertise, a firecracker mouth with a very short fuse, and someone who has lived the majority of his life in a world few Americans can relate to. He is politically incorrect, perceptively shady, and many Americans are loving it. For all his lack of “presidential qualities,” there is no arguing with the fact that he has been “successful” in business and in his somewhat narrow field of life experience.

After all, if a nation is drowning in debt, plagued with poverty, and had its reputation as a world power diminished to the role of a perceived world life coach, then why not get the biggest mouth with the most money and the hardest fist in the position where that mouth will be heard, the money will be spent, and the fist will fall?

At this point, I want to be clear and step back from the land mines I can already hear clicking around this blog. I did not vote for Donald Trump. I have grave concerns about a Trump presidency. While he has amassed great wealth, I have concern over his methods and how they might transfer to the governmental sector. He has been a financial winner. He wants America to win. He will win at all costs. But can America afford those costs?

My purpose in writing is not to persuade or dissuade you regarding a particular candidate, but to acknowledge the questions many are beginning to ask: what if and what now?

Granted, this could be a moot point and someone else could win the Republican nomination. But at this point, it seems we must face the possibility that for many conservatives, our representative on the grandest scale may not represent our beliefs, convictions, or even our view of America.

What, then, are we to do with Donald Trump?

While I wrestle with this as I write, I believe the answer is simple: pray for him.

Even as I look at those words, I feel a slight twinge. It seems too trite. It’s a scapegoat, a dismissal of responsibility. However, I acknowledge this twinge is not because of a deficiency in the power of an Almighty God to whom we pray, but in my small-sighted and prideful notion that I can accomplish more in my own efforts than simply laying concern at the feet of the One who holds all things in his hand.

If I trust that God is sovereign over salvation and the Creator of the very dust we call our land, certainly I can trust him with this. Romans 13 is clear, and God’s sovereignty over our nation and its leaders is not subject to a ballot box. But still, my feelings in this regard are revealing in me not so much a conviction of policy, but a disbelief in the strength of prayer to God.

I should pray for Donald Trump regardless of whether or not he gains public office. Above all, I should pray for his salvation, sanctification, and submission to the leading of the Holy Spirit. I should recognize God’s sovereignty over this election and the world climate. I should be active in doing my part. I should vote and encourage those who carry the burden of leadership with my voice, presence, and prayers. Where I see corruption or those without voices being drowned out by the noise, I am to bring light and give voice to the defenseless for the sake of the Gospel. This is not because I want to be a good American per se, but because I want to trust the Bible as I live in the time and place God has determined.

Nothing supersedes my commitment to Christ and my obligation to care for the poor, pray for the persecuted, and vehemently strive for the Gospel, regardless of what governmental entity or person is above me. Should that authority ask me to step outside the bounds of the Holy Spirit-inspired Scripture, I will continue to pray as I submit to the Higher Authority whose Kingship is higher than my citizenship.

We have a Kingdom and a King. Glory to God for the solid rock upon which our hope is secure and the Gospel is never shifting. While on earth, we will debate and speculate. Ten thousand years from now, there will be no debate – only worship and adoration of a God who has made all things new.

Until then, regardless of election results, let us pray for Donald Trump.