I am speechless, still, even after almost 4 full days have passed since the election results. I don’t know what to think about this country or the people I thought I knew. As a Black woman, I can only share how I feel. From the beginning of this election 2016 season, I have thought it unnecessary to spew hate filled propaganda. I still cringe at the displays of hostility towards Blacks, gays, women, Muslims, Hispanics, and other minorities. In all honesty, I’m more disappointed in the statements of “friends” who profess Christianity, and don’t question the tactics used by Trump. Even if we disagree, there is a way to do it that is respectful and peaceful. Of course, I’ve had to check some people and honestly, I don’t really care if you speak to me again. I’ve unfollowed some folks on FaceBook. Consider yourself lucky that you’ve been removed. I’m trying to rise above your backwards thinking. Last time I checked, right is right and wrong is wrong. Sometimes we have to stand up to the wrong. I do not agree with the manner which Trump ran his campaign or the bullyish and brutish tactics he used. It was as though he planned and executed a hostile takeover. I pledge allegiance to the Un-United States of America. We are more divided than ever before. It’s “us” against “them.” I look at my white counterparts with suspicion and distrust. I wonder (and always will) if they supported him; if they believe his ideals; if they really feel that way about me. I know none of this is rational, but my mind is all over the place right now.
In my shock and disappointment, it has been a great struggle to maintain my own decency and composure, while holding my head up and silently grieving for this country and the backwards mindset of many people. This campaign was never about policy, domestic or foreign. It was about the fact that we’ve had a Black man in the White House for the last 8 years; that working class white America thought they lost something; that America was somehow tainted. I’ve had to disconnect from Facebook for a while since the supporters of the President-Elect are saying how “we” aren’t even giving him a chance. Well, if memory serves me correct, those same voices did not (and still don’t) give President Obama a chance during his 2-term appointment. So, I do not give a rat’s ass about those feeling you’re having. Our democracy worked the way it should even if Trump used fear and ignorance to sway right-wing conservatives, rural America, working class, hate groups, etc., who have resisted and fought every advance for this country President Obama tried to make.
That’s how I feel about it and I’m moving on because at the end of the day, Donald Trump doesn’t have a heaven or hell to put me in. I serve the One, True King: Jesus the Christ. He is the author and finisher of my faith. My hope and trust are in Him. Even if the Trump doesn’t fulfill one promise he made, I have the assurance that God doesn’t lie as man does. I have the assurance that He will do just what He said He will. I have that assurance that presidents will come and go, but God is always faithful, always here, always and forever My King and Lord!
When the Holy Spirit dropped the title on me for this post, I began to think about what that word, “trump,” means. It’s a little bit ironic, but in any event I thought it meant to have victory over or to defeat. According to the Urban Dictionary, it means, “to have superior power over; to surpass or outdo.” However, I do believe I like the definition at Vocabulary.com the best. It states, “To trump is to outrank or defeat someone or something, often in a highly public way.” The title of this post also led me to think about the positions in this way. Again, I deferred to Vocabulary.com. When I looked up the word “president,” it is defined as “the chief executive of a republic” or “an executive officer of a firm or corporation” or “the officer who presides at meetings of an organization.” Think about that for a minute.
Done marinating on that? Now marinate on this. A King, on the other hand and according, again, to Vocabulary.com, rules until death. Do you see where I’m going? Not yet? Okay, so what I’m saying is that Jesus is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He reigns over a kingdom and that would be the kingdom of man, greater than any republic or CEO of any company. Jesus came and died for us that we would have life and have it more abundantly. Who, but a King, has that kind of power? His dying on that cross meant that He lives forever, which means that He is my King forever. By dying on that cross, He inherited an eternal throne that man can’t touch. In John 18, Jesus has been brought before Pilate and questioned. To paraphrase, Pilate is basically saying, “These people want to kill you and I really can’t see that you’ve done anything. They tell me you declare yourself to be King of the Jews. So what have you done to make these people so mad that they want you dead?” Jesus was real smooth. Sometimes you can feel dumb in His presence and He hasn’t done anything except ask a few questions. So, He asked Pilate if his opinion was his own or had people talked about Him. He went on to say this in verse 36 of John 18 (The Message), “My kingdom,” said Jesus, “doesn’t consist of what you see around you. If it did, my followers would fight so that I wouldn’t be handed over to the Jews. But I’m not that kind of king, not the world’s kind of king.” So Pilate comes back, “So you are a king?” Jesus responded like this is verse 37, “You tell me. Because I am King, I was born and entered the world so that I could witness to the truth. Everyone who cares for truth, who has any feeling for the truth, recognizes my voice.”
With that being said and that reassurance, I know who I serve and to whom I belong. If you are a believer, what should you fear? I do not have the time nor the energy to be walking around and living a stalled existence because of fear. Who is man, or Trump for that matter, that I should be afraid? When the World Trade Center was attacked on 9/11, everyone became afraid to fly. I’ll bet you my happy behind was on an airplane within 6 months. Some of you may be looking at Trump as a Goliath, albeit, an untempered Goliath. Nonetheless, God allowed David to defeat the giant. That right there, along with the great battles the Lord allowed His people to win, should be enough to give you the utmost confidence in Our Lord. The only way to defeat a giant (or bully) is to stand up to him. It doesn’t mean there has to be physical violence. Fight back with your mind, with knowledge, with proactivism. God will do the rest. My destiny will not be left in the hands of Donald Trump, his constituents, republicans, democrats, or anyone else. My destiny is what God says it is. The King trumps the President!
Redbone and Rice 