Pilgrims, a Gift and Election Day

Why did the Pilgrims come to this new land? For religious freedom. Why have others followed in their footsteps continuously for centuries? For freedom, for opportunity, for a better life.

The Israelites were the “Pilgrims” in the biblical days. God led them to a land flowing with milk and honey. In this new land far from the oppressive Egyptian Pharaoh, they would have freedom to worship, have flourishing opportunities and have a better life.

The United States of America and Israel are both gifts from God to those who inhabit them. How do we know this? Because the entire world belongs to God. When something belongs to someone else but they give it to you for your enjoyment, that is a gift.

Psalm 24:1 tells us: “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it”

But from the very beginning, God gave the earth to mankind and He charged mankind to be the caretakers.

Genesis 1:28-29 tells us:
“Be fruitful and increase in numbers; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground… I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it.”

And when God placed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, Genesis 2:15 tells us that He put them there “to work it and take care of it”.

These scriptures tell us to be active caretakers of this earth. “Be fruitful”, “increase”, “fill”, “subdue”, “rule”, “work it”, “take care of it”.

As the current caretakers, we are responsible for making decisions which will best take care of it. We must ensure that those decisions align with God’s Word and honor the gift with which we have been entrusted.

Voting is one of those decisions. We are blessed to live in a country in which everyone has the freedom to vote. The Pilgrims risked their lives to cross a huge, intimidating, relentless ocean to establish a land of freedom. While our country has always struggled with ensuring freedom to all people, we have a proven history of always remaining in that struggle to gain more freedoms rather than giving up and giving in.

Tomorrow is an election day in the United States. Let us be active caretakers of the nation, the state, the county, the city and the community where we are planted and vote. Let us pray for wisdom and discernment. Let us take care of these precious gifts of freedom and opportunity. And let us be THANKFUL for these gifts just as the Pilgrims were long ago.