Post-Election Discipleship: 3 Ways to Reach Disappointed People

Rev. Junius B. Dotson shares 3 ways your church can reach disappointed people in the aftermath of a contentious election cycle.

Post-election Discipleship

These are polarizing times, especially following the November election in the United States. The result was so close about half of our nation was thrilled by the outcome, and the other half ended up disappointed.

People were entrenched before the election, and many have remained entrenched afterward. They have stopped talking to each other and really are talking at each other.

What we are facing together in this country is a very unique opportunity to engage in post-election discipleship – an opportunity to connect with people who are disappointed. I want to offer three practical ways that we can practice intentional discipleship in the days ahead.

First, we can remind people what it means to be the body of Christ. In short, we can be bridge builders.

This is an opportunity to remind people that our mission as a church to make disciples of Jesus Christ transcends all racial lines. It transcends all ideological lines. It transcends any political party or any political ideology.

Galatians 3:28 says, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

That means if I am sitting on a pew with you, it does not matter if you are a Republican or a Democrat, a liberal or a conservative. We are all one in Christ Jesus. We have been joined together in a new family, and we have to be reminded of that fact as we are engaging in post-election discipleship.

We have to be intentional about reminding people that despite our different backgrounds, our histories, our preferences or where we grew up, God has asked us to do one thing in common. God has asked us to live together, to love together, to worship and to work together while we operate in unity as part of the family of God.

The second thing that we can do intentionally is to re-engage the mission.

We cannot be more distressed by who won the election than we are about the things that move the heart of God, or about our burden as children of God, as believers in Christ, to help people understand, define and discover the ultimate salvation.

The ultimate hope for our world does not lie in a political election. It does not lie in a political candidate. It does not lie in a political platform, but instead, it lies in the hope of the gospel. Our ultimate allegiance is to the Lord Jesus Christ and the power of Jesus to change lives, to transform communities.

The third intentional thing we can do in terms of post-election discipleship is to call the nation to revival.

As believers, we are called to pray for our leaders. It does not matter whether you are in agreement with a political party that happens to be in power, we are called to pray for our leaders to make good decisions that honor God.

In the midst of the problems and the contradictions that the world produces for our faith, God invites us to faithfulness, to be hope bearers, to be ambassadors for the gospel of Christ.

In post-election discipleship, this is our opportunity to reach out to people who are disappointed, who feel disenfranchised and who feel left out of the system. It is our opportunity to intentionally reach across political divides and say there is one who invites you into a relationship that is beyond what you can see in the natural realm – one who offers you ultimate hope.