I have deeply struggled with politics. Through the years, I have chosen the following stances regarding politics in this particular order:

Teens: Didn’t care

Twenties: Didn’t care but people around me did so I listened

Thirties: Started to realize government affects me so I just went with the consensus

Forties: Realized that studying communism in the DPRK made me very grateful for democracy.

But, here is the issue. What you claim to be politically has a direct affect on how you are perceived here in the states? How you vote can separate you from lifelong friends or even label you as a racist?

If you dare take a side then you are on the wrong side to somebody.

“Those who stand for nothing fall for anything.” -Alexander Hamilton (or Malcolm X)

And therein lies the problem…did a Black nationalist say this or a founding father? Who am I quoting? Who am I supporting? Who I align with determines who I am? Who I have sex with tells me who I am? Really? 🙄

I had a professor tell me in college that I “should never be a republican” because democrats don’t support the arts. I was an artist and the arts needed to be funded.

I had a pastor tell me in my twenties that I “had to be a conservative” because only true Christians are conservative.

I had a high school friend tell me she has always had an attraction to women and voting conservative would never give her the chance to have a legal marriage.

I was told by another pastor that “white conservatives are nationalists” and if I didn’t speak up for Black Americans than I was “violent in my silence”.

I lost friends because I defended the death of George Floyd in a post on my Facebook. They stopped calling and inviting. I had another friend say I was weak minded because most white conservatives are white supremacists who hate immigrants, homosexuals, and trans.

This is a lose lose.

If I go to a church that is conservative then I am a white nationalist who hates. If I go to a predominantly black church and vote liberal than I am violating the Bible’s condemnation of homosexuality. I have been members of both types of churches.

I went to a Turning Point USA rally recently just to see what all the fuss was about and protesters were picketing at the entrance yelling that I hated people. One poster said “Jesus would be standing here with us…not in there with all of you racists.” 🤔

I checked Instagram recently on the Super Bowl halftime show and a few of my close friends said that if I watched the “Bad Bunny” performance then I contributed to the degradation of America. I had other friends on Facebook that said watching Turning Points show made me a racist. Who is right?

It seems the only option is to take a side. Being a “moderate” is riding the fence and eventually I will fall off the fence for whoever pushes me harder. I was told that being a moderate made me a “wimpy fence rider”.

This is my current observation…

“Dear Conservatives, You are super judgmental.”

“Dear Liberals, You are super elitist.”

When I was a conservative, I was super judgmental. When I was a liberal, I was super elitist. When I was an independent, I was super pissed off. 😳

I can say this about all three because I have voted as all three since I was 18. I am not proud of my judgmental or elitist views, but I think what I regret the most is my lack of courage. All of these voting postures have been based on how I felt in the moment as I was influenced by region and popular opinion. I regret not having my own convictions. I regret not posting what I have come to believe since I saw the eyes of God in 2023.

I have a strong conviction in democracy.

Voting is an honor. How we use our voice is what matters. I love that liberals can shout their truth from media outlets. I love that conservatives can do rallies on college campuses. I love that all can do podcasts, radio talk shows, and newspaper editorials. Even average nobodies like me can make a blog no one reads. 🤣

Interpreting Jesus and telling me where He is and where He isn’t doesn’t seem to be how we should start and continue this dialogue about politics. The reality is Jesus was with the protesters outside the rally and the participants inside the rally. He is in us all whether liberal or conservative. He meets us where we are.

I am realizing that I do stand for something. I stand for unity. I stand for all voices to be heard. I don’t think all voices are correct. I think we all want to belong somewhere. I think all voices are looking for belonging. Choosing a side makes us feel like we are apart of something. I stand for freedom to think and choose. That to me is a bipartisan issue.

What I loved about the Black Panthers was their willingness to risk it all for what they believed in…even if it cost them their lives. They were militant and inspired violence, but they weren’t afraid.

What I loved about Charlie Kirk is that he was willing to take on the debate…publicly. He picked up the mic unashamedly.

What I loved about MLK Jr. is that his dream was proclaimed and he believed in peace. He knew violence would not work. He knew the Word of God would work.

What I love about Candace Owens is that she speaks up against what she believes is misconceptions among the Black community. She is detested by many African Americans but yet she speaks boldly.

What I love about Bernie Sanders is that he was willing to stand up for socialism when socialism wasn’t even an acceptable notion. Now, it is the predominant belief among Gen Zers and millennials.

What I like about Trump is that he speaks His mind (unapologetically) and globally makes a statement.

What I love about my friend that advocates for acceptance and tolerance among the LGBTQ+ community supported my religious convictions when they differed from her agnostic views.

What I love about my friend who went from he to she was that she was willing to speak up for what she believed was scientifically true about her despite what her religious background said was true.

Here is what I love. I love the freedom that backed all these people up. I am not a white nationalist nor a liberal socialist. I am a believer in freedom. I am a firm believer in democracy.

Democracy is freedom. It is a system of checks and balances. Both sides get to be heard. Two sides of the aisle. I love America and its firm belief in freedom. As a missionally-minded person to North Korean refugees and a believer in the unification of North and South Korea, I have naturally made myself political. It’s a political issue, but it is also a human issue. God burns with love for His people in North Korea, and a political system is harming God’s children in North Korea. So I have come to realize that freedom is the most beautiful privilege. If studying communism in North Korea has taught me anything, it is that Americans don’t know how precious freedom really is…

Freedom of Speech

Freedom of Religion

Freedom of the Press

I have separated church and state too long in my own life. I have a conviction that I believe is mine, but that doesn’t make me right or wrong. It makes me an American who is thankful I have been given the right to vote for what I believe is right. That is indicative of the Kingdom of Heaven where Christ is King. We can believe differently. How wonderful is that!

I believe the inscription on Lady Liberty is the message of Christ to all.

“Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

I think that sin leads to death. It separates us from Christ. If there is conviction of sin then there is a Savior that can bring healing with Truth that will love you into healing. I have been in sin when I thought I wasn’t. I have been in sin and knew it, but did nothing about it. Judgment did not rescue me. Sonship did. Elitism did not convict me. The Spirit did. Knowing I was loved brought me into freedom. Real freedom within.

Freedom inside me leads to freedom outside me. This is what I want for America. Freedom inside us all.

Every single person Jesus spent time with became more like Him. Acceptance is not tolerance of sin. Acceptance is knowing that you are loved by the Creator. Being accepted by everyone was not what Jesus advocated. Jesus advocated being accepted as His beloved Son. Because of His death, burial and resurrection, we could be more like Christ who reveals the Father.

“Dear Conservatives, The people who have been with Jesus do not judge, they love.”

“Dear Liberals, People who have been with Jesus also become what has loved them.”

With all that said, judgment and condemnation never saves. It only leads to more death. The law of the letter kills. More law, more continuation of sin.

If our identity is Democrat or Republican, then I think we have missed the point of what Christ came to declare. I believe Christ is “neutral” politically as He revealed Himself to Joshua as the “Angel-of-the-Lord” in Joshua 5:13-15. I think what Christ is not neutral on is our hearts being tenderized to obedience. He is with us in battle, but the real battle is for our hearts to stay tender before the Lord. Tender to His love, Truth, and power.

I read the entire Bible in 2023 and again in 2025. In 2023, I realized that obedience is mandatory. If Israel had just obeyed, then they would have experienced the promised land and not exile. The Pharisees could have had their Messiah. The early church would not have been persecuted. I realized that faith is obedience. In 2025, I realized that His voice can be believed. He will do what He promised. If He said it, He will do it because He has already done it. Faith is obeying His voice, not the voice of a political party that is judgmental or elitist in their interpretation of Christ.

I am a passionate believer in Christ. I believe obedience is safety. Intimacy cultivates obedience because the more you know how loved you are, the more you become what loves you. The more time you spend with Jesus, the more you want to be more aligned into who He is. This is identity.

Who we have sex with is not our identity. I believe every believer in Christ who has chosen a homosexual lifestyle would not want to be identified for the totality of who they are as what gender they have sex with, nor do I think someone who has chosen to transition from their birth sex to the other sex would want to be fully identified as Trans. We all are more than this. We are fearfully and wonderfully made.

When I speak of “identity”, I am speaking to the heart of a man. Who are they really? Are they male, female, homosexual, athlete, lawyer, professor, mother, father? These names have no real bearing on the totality of a man or woman’s full identity.

The identity of all of us is determined by the Creator who loved us enough to give His Son to make us one with Him. God became Emmanuel so we could be sons and daughters of Christ.

The identity of a man/woman is determined by their heart.

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” -1 Samuel 16:7 (NLT)

You know what I think about all the time when I see posts telling me that I need to speak up for tolerance or show up for Christianity…how are they feeling in their heart?

My trans friend is sad and has been for a long time. She spent years thinking she was in a wrong body so he used science and surgery to change from he to she.

My friend who has chosen a same sex marriage just wants her kids to grow up in a non-judgmental world where they can meet a God who is love and grace.

My friend who is the Executive Director of a pro-life clinic just wants to save babies.

My friend who has had several abortions wants to believe in her conviction to choose.

“Dear Conservatives, Is judgment working?”

“Dear Liberals, Is it ok to act superior and force people to change?”

You are both in a blame game.

Can you be a Christian and a liberal? Conservatives would say “no”.

Can you be a Christian and a conservative? Liberals would say “no”.

This (to me) is just confirming that the system is earthly material and not heaven substance. How can we bring a Christ centered identity built in heaven to an earthly system of politics? We need anointed men and women of God in politics, education, industry, economics, armed forces, etc?

Christians are kingdom minded. The kingdom mindset is the opposite of American culture. Christians who are real Christians think of themselves as sons and daughters in a kingdom run by a King who conquered death. Christ died that we all would be of one heart and one mind, and walk in holiness and purity. This is the kingdom of His dear Son.

We are all becoming…including me. I have wafted between conservative, liberal, independent, moderate and “undecided”. But yet, in His tender mercy, Jesus has always remained in me and with me. Whether you are a liberal or conservative, you can still be a child of God. That to me is a sacred, beautiful reality.

I have chosen Christ because He is in me, and in you, and with us. He is Emmanuel. The God in the arena and outside on the street corner. He went to hell, got the keys, and now dwells in heaven making a home for all of us.

The closer I have come to Jesus, the closer I have come to becoming more like Him in my heart. This makes the Spirit renewed in us day by day. The flesh will die daily because it has already been crucified. My hope is that we no longer make each other believe what we believe is politically true, but that we encourage all to “believe in the One that He has sent.” I believe this will humble us out of our elitism and judgment. It will naturally guide us to Christ’s identity.

Jesus told them, “This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one He has sent.” -John 6:29 (NLT)

Christ does the work within us. Your journey is yours but “as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord”. -Joshus 24:15

“Dear Conservatives, I pray you will know how loved you are by Christ.”

“Dear Liberals, I pray you will know how loved you are by Christ.”