Psalm 146:3-7 (CEB) proclaims: “Don’t trust leaders; don’t trust any human beings— there’s no saving help with them! Their breath leaves them, then they go back to the ground. On that very same day, their plans die too. The person whose help is the God of Jacob— the person whose hope rests on the Lord their God— is truly happy! God: the maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, God: who is faithful forever, who gives justice to people who are oppressed, who gives bread to people who are starving.”

Many of you may be rejoicing over the election results while others are struggling to understand them and are truly frightened of what this might mean for them or for their loved ones.  The markets have reacted and the world is in shock, people are protesting in the streets.  I think that the shock and the protests would have happened if the election swung the other way as well.

So what do we do? We are divided as a nation and as a people.  We appear to have very different visions of our country. I think that we need to turn to scripture which reminds us that our home, our citizenship is first and foremost in God’s heavenly kingdom.  God is the one to whom our ultimate allegiance lies. We are to put God first in our hearts and in our lives. The psalmist speaks of the humanness of our leaders.  They may promise salvation but only God delivers.

The day dawns just as every other day and the future lies before us.  The challenge for us, as it has been and always will be, is to put our faith in God.  For God will not forsake us.  Whatever happens tomorrow or the next day God will not fail to uphold us.  God will not fail to will and work for the good of all creation through us and in us.

What we do today then is the same thing we have always done:  love God, do justice, be merciful, and walk humbly.  We open our eyes to the needs around us, we lift up our voices to speak for those who cannot, we welcome the ones no one else does, and we love God through loving our neighbors as ourselves. We provide light for those in the darkness and comfort for those who are fearful.  We work for peace where there is none; we live in love and speak out against hate and violence, we teach our children to do the same.  We continue to be about building the inclusive kingdom of God in our midst.

So as a new day dawns we, as followers of Christ, as followers of the Prince of Peace, are called to do what we’ve always done, love God and love our neighbors as ourselves.