Election 2016: Reconsidering Donald Trump

There was only one way I could reach the conclusion I've made concerning the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election. It had to be through a long circuitous route from disapproval to disbelief to denial to disturbed acceptance. As much as I don't want to admit it, I may have to vote for Donald Trump.

Maybe I should've taken this stance all along. It's a sort of kicking-and-screaming realization that in order to keep Hillary Clinton out of office, I may have to check the name of a filthy-mouthed, womanizing, casino owner that has barely even spoken to the issues during his year-plus campaign. 

Out of the 16 people that ran for the Republican nomination, Trump would've been my very last choice. Literally, anyone else that ran, I would've voted for with no hesitation. Coincidentally, anyone else would likely be running away with this election given the awful prospect of Hillary Clinton becoming president. 

The thought of Hillary Clinton actually becoming president was a prospect I didn't fully appreciate until the final debate on Wednesday night. She masterfully danced around issues displaying her complete inability to tell the truth. She dodged so many difficult questions, she probably would've been better suited to help the Dodgers against the Cubs.

Unfortunately, it was not her dodging that turned this election for me. Hillary seemed quite proud of her pro-choice record and she seemed more than ready to answer a question about her desire to remake the Supreme Court in her own ultra-liberal image. These are not new revelations to anyone who has been paying attention, but there was something extra disappointing about hearing it straight from her mouth.

The key difference between Hillary and Trump is believability. I am fully convinced that Hillary believes in everything she stated during the debate. Her conviction, whether it's based in a lust for power or deeply held belief, comes through quite plainly.

Trump, however, is quite easy to see through. He changed a lot of his stances to win a nomination. He has kowtowed to the Christian crowd in hopes of retaining the Republican-evangelical stranglehold. Trump can't hide his past. He can't be anything other than what he's always been. His only conviction a deep-seated dedication to himself. Yet, here he is, the only viable alternative to the single-worst Democratic politician in history.  And here I am, a hashtag-never-Trump conservative Christian actually considering casting my vote for the man.

Well, let me put it this way, if my state—a traditional red-state is in play come November 8, I expect to hold my nose, check his name, and immediately pray for forgiveness before running home to take a shower. This begrudging reality is only, and I mean only, due to the fact that I can't stomach a Hillary Clinton presidency.

Let me say this loud and clear, I am not afraid of Hillary Clinton. I am not afraid of her policies nor her desire to remake the Supreme Court into a left-wing activist arm of her political machine. If she gets in the White House, let her do her worst. Religious liberty may suffer or even evaporate. Abortion may increase under her militantly pro-choice administration. She may turn America into a socialist nation. Again, not afraid.

I am simply appalled at many of her policy proposals. For that reason alone, I may have to vote for a man whose lack of conviction I find reprehensible. That bothers me. This election bothers me.

Regardless of what happens next month, we must pray for our nation. We must be sober-minded. We cannot put hope in Trump, Mike Pence, or a Christian-friendly Supreme Court. The Church's only hope is in the Kingdom. America's only hope is a Jesus-exalting, sin-renouncing, Holy Ghost revival.

Dear Evangelical: If you support Donald Trump, please don't tell anyone else

If you haven't heard by now, presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump met with a group of prominent evangelical leaders on Tuesday. The meeting was not billed as a wholesale endorsement from those attending, but more of a question and answer session concerning the issues about which conservative Christians care most.

For a candidate that has spent much of the past year demeaning opponents, making fun of crippled reporters, cursing, and flaunting his greed, one would think Trump's candidacy would be a hard sell to the evangelical voting bloc formerly known as the "moral majority." However, since Trump has become the inevitable Republican nominee, many evangelicals have latched onto Trump's lone redeeming quality–he's not Hillary Clinton.

There are still some "Never Trump" holdouts. Trump's campaign demeanor and his track record as a greedy, strip-club/casino-owning, foul-mouthed reality television star deem him unelectable in the eyes of many.

Never has the uncomfortable juxtaposition of Trump and the "religious right" been so captured as in the photo taken on Tuesday featuring Trump's biggest evangelical supporter, Liberty University President Jerry Falwell Jr. giving Trump a thumbs-up with a framed Playboy magazine featuring Trump and a porn star on the cover on the wall behind them.

A leader of the same group that raked adulterous President Bill Clinton over the coals for his many indiscretions and that has repeatedly attacked President Obama over his myriad immoral policies posing for a photo-op with a Playboy magazine in the background. Talk about an embarrassing moment for us "values voters."

Trump's mindless rhetoric of the last year and his increasingly repugnant policy proposals should have been enough to expose him as a fraud. But it was Falwell's photo gaffe that has exposed the fraudulence of the "moral majority."

There is nothing morally upstanding about Donald Trump. And before you shoot that comment or email my way calling me judgmental or a Pharisee, you would waste no time calling President Obama and/or Hillary Clinton immoral. In fact, I've seen you post much more egregious words about both of them on your Facebook statuses, so don't even go there.

Given his track record, it's hypocritical for us to issue Trump a free pass while lambasting every immoral liberal that has ever undermined the Judeo-Christian values we say we hold dear.

With all of that said, in the interest of not making all evangelical Christians look hypocritical, please don't tell anyone else if you plan to vote for Trump. Please don't publicly defend him against evil Hillary's attacks in the coming months. After all, he has given her more than enough ammunition to use in the fight.

Resist the urge to put that bumper sticker on the car that your unsaved friends see you driving to church every Sunday. Don't post that clever tweet or Facebook status revealing Trump as the man who'll bring America back to God.

Pastor, please don't even think about comparing Donald Trump to King Cyrus in your Election Sunday sermon. As difficult as it may be to resist, please don't purchase that Trump yard sign.

Go ahead and vote Trump. But please, for the sake of your own testimony, and that of the Church as a whole, don't tell another soul that you did.

Mr. or Mrs. Evangelical, your vote is between you and God. Considering the choice we have before us, it has never been more important that you keep it that way.

When a Muslim Attacks a Gay Nightclub

When a Muslim attacks a gay nightclub, you might expect there to be plenty of hot takes from Christians. Immediately following the worst mass shooting in America's history at Orlando, Florida's "hottest gay bar" The Pulse, early Sunday morning, the takes were hotter than any event the club could have ever boasted. 

From President Obama's failure to mention "radical Islam" to the rampant speculation that the democrats are going to come after our guns, the politics of the moment quickly became the primary focus while investigators were still identifying bodies and notifying the next of kin. 

People died. 50 precious souls that Jesus died to save, dropped into eternity in a matter of minutes.

Our hearts should break for those who identify as LGBT—a community that has been shunned by many of us for the most part. 

In this moment of unspeakable tragedy, "love the sinner, hate the sin" just doesn't cut it. Our love for the sinner should have us on our faces crying out to God for spiritual awakening in the LGBT community rather than prefacing every conversation about this massacre with that pithy little quote. 

What about the Muslim community? We get so mad at President Obama and our federal government because they won't use that extra adjective to describe this type of terrorism and we lash out at all Muslims.

Our hearts should break for the Muslim community—yet another people group that is completely blind to the Gospel. Given all the bloodshed at the hands of "radical jihadists" in recent years, many of us might just be inclined to let them all go to Hell. Judging by Facebook reactions, this seems to be the case more often than not. 

We've allowed both groups to become demonized and untouchable. 

The rhetoric following the massacre has been all too predictable. Barely 48 hours after the attack and we're all just yelling again. I believe it's time—past time, in fact—to stop yelling, stop fearing, and for heaven's sake stop taking your talking points from political candidates and actually be Jesus to the people who need Him most. 

We must do better. 

The Obituary of Religious Right

Religious Right, 36, died suddenly Tuesday night, March 1. Mrs. Right, known for her standing with republican politicians on issues of life and morality, succumbed to heart failure due to ongoing issues from injuries initially sustained November 2008 and again in November 2012.

Born to the late Dr. Jerry Falwell in 1979, Mrs. Right was initially known as Moral Majority. She was credited with helping secure both of President Reagan’s terms in '80 and '84. She also assisted in George H.W. Bush’s election win in '88.

After eight years of condemning nearly every decision President Bill Clinton made, Mrs. Right came through in a pinch for George W. Bush in 2000. She, along with 9/11 memories helped to secure Bush’s win in 2004 as well.

When 2008 rolled around, however, her influence in the Republican Party began to dwindle. But she pressed on and backed moderate candidate Senator John McCain despite many misgivings. McCain’s ill-fated decision of adding conservative Alaska governor Sarah Palin to the ticket clinched the deal for Mrs. Right. Their loss to Senator Barack Obama caused Mrs. Right to experience episodes of paranoia resulting in numerous conspiracy theories that nearly decimated her credibility.

In 2012, Mrs. Right grasped onto Republican candidate Mitt Romney in a daring move that nearly cost her everything. Still, she was able to justify voting for the then recent convert to the pro-life, pro-family stance because of fear over the impending doom of a second Obama term. Her near complete forfeiture of the values she held dear, coupled with another loss to President Obama left her on life support for weeks.

She recovered, thanks to President Obama’s assault on life, religion, and the family from 2012-2015. Things were finally looking up as President Obama’s term was coming to a close. There were at least 10 candidates she could support without sacrificing multiple convictions. However, she decided to sacrifice nearly all of those convictions, casting her lot with a strip club owning, Planned Parenthood supporting, Democratic Party donor.

Her candidate, Republican frontrunner Donald J. Trump, swept nearly every state in the Bible Belt on Super Tuesday with her help.  The presumptive nominee’s wins in the south started a ripple effect, culminating in Mrs. Right's death shortly after Mr. Trump, in his victory press conference, extolled the virtues of Planned Parenthood mere months after undercover cameras caught the organization illegally selling organs from aborted babies. 

Services will be held this July in Cleveland, Ohio with her nominee, Mr. Trump, likely presiding.

Flowers and condolences may be delivered to the offices of her brother Dr. Jerry Falwell Jr., and her spokesman Pastor Robert Jeffress.

There will be no visitation as per family’s request.

Dear Unbeliever, Donald Trump does not appeal to all evangelicals

It’s risky to wade into evangelical political waters—especially when those waters are teeming with fellow Christians who have a different opinion than your own. But I’ve come to the conclusion that you, Mr. or Mrs. Unbeliever, are worth the risk.

Donald J. Trump has caught the imagination of many on the political right. And, as you probably already know, my fellow evangelicals are known for voting republican more often than not. So naturally, Mr. Trump is experiencing some real momentum among values voters lately. But I want you to know, there are many of us evangelicals who will never support Mr. Trump.

We evangelicals are also known for using the Bible as the source of all godly wisdom and knowledge. Going to that source, I can find many reasons not to support Mr. Trump. There are multiple verses in Proverbs that seem to speak right to the situation. “Do you see a man who is hasty in his words? There is more hope for a fool than for him” - Proverbs 29:20. Also, “A fool gives full vent to his spirit, but a wise man quietly holds it back” - Proverbs 29:11.

Then we go to the words of Jesus in Luke 6:45. “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bears what is good, and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bears what is evil. For of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.”

In Matthew’s gospel, Jesus is recorded as saying that His people should be salt and light. He wasn’t saying we should pour salt into open wounds while blinding people with a spotlight. What He is clearly talking about in that passage (Matthew 5:13-16) is the flavorful attractiveness that salt brings to the dish. And the light was a reference to shining a positive light in a dark place. There’s no way for me to bring attractiveness to the kingdom of salt and light while also supporting Donald Trump. His recklessness of speech is the antithesis of salt and light.

In Colossians 4:5-6, the Apostle Paul (whose writings comprise one-third of the entire New Testament) wrote, “walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, wisely using the opportunity. Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you should answer everyone.” Quite honestly, I cannot hold to that scripure passage while simultaneously supporting a man whose rhetoric has insulted and inflamed many of you.

I can’t vote for Donald Trump because I care about what the Bible says and because I care about what you think of the Gospel that I represent. We evangelicals have not always represented the sacred words of Scripture with the love and care that those words require. For that, I am sorry.

Obviously, Mr. Trump has touched a chord with many people. Maybe you are considering voting for him. And that’s your choice. But just in case you are part of the majority who finds many of his words and deeds reprehensible, I want you to know you that are not alone in that sentiment. There are still plenty of us evangelicals who find his rhetoric inconsistent with the Gospel we proclaim. I’m sorry if the growing evangelical support for Mr. Trump’s campaign has left a bad taste in your mouth. It’s not supposed to be that way.

Five Disadvantages of Ministering in the Most Bible-Minded City in America

In case you missed it, Chattanooga, Tennessee has again been named the "Most Bible-Minded City in America" by Barna and the American Bible Society. Chattanooga owned the title three straight years from 2012-2014 before slipping to No. 2 behind Birmingham/Anniston/Tuscaloosa, Alabama in 2015.

You may be thinking this makes life easy for ministers in across the city. Maybe you believe it's easy to evangelize in this modern-day Constantinople.

Well, you'd be wrong. Ministry is never easy. In fact, I believe evangelizing the lost in our fine city is more difficult in some ways than many pre- or post-Christian cities–or as Barna puts it the "Least Bible-Minded Cities in America." Here are five reasons I've come to that conclusion.

1. Everybody has religion

Okay, so we don't have a large Atheist community as some cities in post-Christian regions do, but we do have a largely religiously inoculated base we are trying to reach. Many have just enough religion to deem themselves good enough. They may not cuss, chew, or hang with those who do, but in many cases they don't actively follow Jesus either. There's no relationship, just religion. They don't go to church at all. Many blame it on a distaste for organized religion, but they don't realize all they have is disorganized religion. It's a dangerous place to be spiritually.

2. Churchianity is still big

Statistics show cultural Christianity is dying quickly across our nation. Those who would identify as "Christian" in the past because of family background and cultural environment, are declaring themselves "nones." While that may be true nationally, it's not as true in Chattanooga. Belonging to a church body still offers societal advantages in the scenic city. Whether or not they've actually trusted Jesus for salvation is secondary to appearances. Churchianity never saved anyone.

3. False doctrine is pervasive

This is true anywhere. But in Chattanooga, it's at epidemic proportions. As a part of a ministerial team in the inner-city of Chattanooga, I can personally attest to the fact that some of the biggest alcoholics & drug dealers/addicts in the city are, in fact, "saved." It's not my intention to make light of the situation, but evangelizing some of these folks is like beating your head against a wall. They were "once-saved, always saved" as children but haven't repented or actively followed Jesus in many, many years. And no matter how messy their lives may be, it's extremely difficult to help them realize that the problem is their ongoing sinful lifestyles.

4. Legalist attitudes have turned many sinners off to the Gospel

Look, all it takes to be saved is turning from sin to Jesus. That's it. Following Him is the supernatural progression that should take place afterward. But many churches have decided that behavior modification equals or is greater than the Gospel. Placing behavioral change before the Gospel is legalism. Many sinners believe they'll never be good enough because of this approach. While it's true that none of us are or ever will be good enough to deserve God's grace, we must continually reach out as imperfect people pointing other imperfect people to a perfect Saviour.

5. Church-hurt is a major issue

Church-hurt is one of the worst kinds of hurt. It really stings when a minister or fellow-Christian purposely hurts you. Many have sworn off the entire church because of one bad experience. While it's true that not all church-hurt is intentional, the worst kind usually is. I've heard stories of manipulation, lies, and just downright meanness on the part of some ministers and lay-people. From folks being called out from behind a pulpit to secret meetings and cliques, it's unfortunate that some have chosen to conduct themselves in such a way that brings hurt to people's lives. And many times it's much harder to reach someone with deep church-hurt.


I love Chattanooga, Tennessee. I love to minister in our fine city. But we need just as much prayer as the least Bible-minded city in America. Our city is anything but totally redeemed. There are hurting people, sinful lifestyles, and religious walls throughout Chattanooga. Don't let the "Most Bible-minded city in America" title fool you. We still need Jesus.