“Never in my lifetime have I seen anything like what is going on at the moment in the U.S. presidential campaign,” my friend Dr. R.T. Kendall wrote in an article explaining to Brits why many Americans are backing Donald Trump. “Many Americans are fed up with what is going on in Washington. Many high-profile Christian leaders have come out publicly for multibillionaire Donald Trump. They see the other candidates as perpetuating ‘business as usual.'”
I agree this is an unusual election and that people are frustrated. I’m frustrated. That’s why I’m supporting Ted Cruz, who will shake things up in Washington and help get the nation back on course.
What I can’t believe is how some Christians who I believe have the same values I do are supporting Donald Trump. One leader I respect told me privately that he supports Trump, partly because he met the billionaire once and Trump was respectful of him in that meeting. Conversely, he invited Cruz to speak at one this leader’s conferences and Cruz declined. To me, it’s petty to make your decision based basically on the fact that you were offended by one candidate and felt affirmed by the other. What about their policies and ability to govern?
And some of the comments that I have read online by supposed Christians are just idiotic. As if they will focus on one policy above all else and not look at the total picture.
Many conservative Christians are supporting Sen. Ted Cruz, as I am. Yet I’m surprised that some leaders I respect have come out for Donald Trump. I was taught in journalism college to “name names” when you write an editorial like this. But my purpose is not to embarrass anyone and I’m not wanting to single out any leaders. They have as much right to endorse someone as I do. Yet it seems some of them seem to ignore his multiple marriages as well as the fact he made much of his wealth in casinos and that, in the past, he favored abortion.
It seems it is not Trump’s religious views that have enthralled them. It comes down to his forceful personality and political views. Or they like the fact he’s not dependent on donors or that he’s strong on defending us against radical terrorists or that he will address hot potato issues like immigration. Those are things I can admire.
But that’s not the whole package. And they seem to ignore that the man who has a great chance of winning the nomination is Ted Cruz!
For the first time in many decades, we have a serious conservative, principled Republican who shares our beliefs. It’s not even like Jimmy Carter, who was a Baptist Sunday school teacher and who was then and is still very liberal. Apparently, his Baptists beliefs didn’t shape his policies. Ted Cruz, on the other hand, says there are two documents that shape everything he believes. The first is the Bible, and the second is the U.S. Constitution.
I personally believe that God has raised up Ted Cruz, and God could raise up someone else if he doesn’t win. God could also turn the hearts of either Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton just as He turned hearts of leaders in the Bible. But in a democracy, we have the rights to put into office whom we want. Why assume that the only way to get righteous leadership is for God to change the hearts?
On the other side are some Christian leaders who are seemingly sitting out the election. While there very important issues at stake, I’m concerned that some Christian leaders are often more concerned about their own ministry and their own offerings than they are with getting involved and seeing that the very direction of our country (which will undoubtedly negatively affect their ministries and their offerings in the future) is at stake.
The church must wake up! We are no longer a majority, but we are a serious plurality that could tip things in the right direction. Why is that that “other side” is more passionate, more organized and more committed to their cause than we are to ours? Why are we lukewarm when it comes to these issues that shape the nation?
I know that there are those who will disagree with me. In a democracy, we have the right to disagree. We also have the right to advocate, and with whatever platform God has given me and whatever influence I have, I want to encourage people to wake up to see what the options are and to support Ted Cruz. I personally believe that, with the choice between Ted Cruz and Hillary Clinton (who seems certain to win the Democratic nomination), Americans would pick Ted Cruz. That is not so certain with Donald Trump. Individually, none of us can affect the election, but together, we have more power than we think we do.
The greatest power we have is prayer, and we need not only to vote, but we need to pray. There needs to be a shift in our nation. We need people’s eyes to be opened.
It’s akin to what R.T. Kendall wrote at the end of his article: “Whatever (people say), we can only pray and trust that God’s purposes will ultimately be served in this nation.” {eoa}
Stephen Strang 
