Dear friend,
This letter is only for my Friends. It will not go to anyone else.
I wanted to write to you before Tuesday, the way I would speak to a few close friends around my kitchen table after everyone else had gone home. A little more honestly. A little more plainly.
So here is what is on my heart before the vote.
What I am hoping for.
I will not pretend with you. I hope the people who stand with this president keep their seats. I believe he has more work to do, and I would like to see him given the room to finish it.
But I want to say something just as plainly. I do not know what will happen on Tuesday. Nobody does. Not the pundits, not the polls, and not an old man in Rome. Anyone who tells you they are certain is guessing.
So I am not going to make you a prediction. I am going to tell you what I am praying for instead.
What I am praying for.
I am praying for three things.
That people vote. Especially the ones who feel their vote does not matter. It does.
That the counting is honest and the day is peaceful. No violence. No chaos. Just a free people choosing, the way it should be.
That whatever happens, we keep our heads and our hearts. I have watched good people lose both over elections. I do not want that for you.
What I am not worried about.
Here is the thing I most want you to hear.
Proverbs chapter 21 verse 1 says this.
The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord. He directs it like a watercourse wherever He pleases.
Every leader in every nation, the ones we cheer for and the ones we fear, is still in the hand of God. He is not on the ballot on Tuesday. He is not waiting for the results. He already knows them.
That does not mean our votes do not matter. They do. It means our peace does not depend on them.
If Tuesday goes the way you hope, give thanks, and stay humble. If it does not, do not despair. I have watched this country go through many elections in seventy years. It has survived every one of them, and so has the Church. God has not left His throne once.
How I will spend election night.
I will tell you exactly what I plan to do.
I will have supper with Sister Margaret. Something simple. She has threatened soup.
I will take Peanut for his slow walk to the end of the street and back.
I will not sit up all night watching the television. I did that once, many years ago, and I was no wiser at three in the morning than I was at nine o’clock. Only more tired, and less kind.
Instead, I will read Psalm 4 before bed. Verse 8 is my favorite.
In peace I will lie down and sleep, for You alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety.
And then I will go to sleep. The results will be there in the morning. So will God.
I would love for you to do the same. Turn off the television earlier than you think you should. Read Psalm 4. Sleep. Wake up on Wednesday and be kind to your neighbors, whichever sign was in their yard.
Thank you.
I want to end by thanking you.
You chose to become a Friend of Father Thomas. You did not have to. Your support is what lets me keep writing to everyone else for free, including many people who feel very alone right now. I do not take that lightly.
Hit reply and tell me one thing you are praying for this Tuesday. I would love to hear.
God bless you, friend. Sleep well on Tuesday night.
With you in prayer always,
Father Thomas