Those are the words of Benjamin Franklin spoken to a concerned questioner just outside of the Constitutional Convention in September of 1787. During the infancy of this new nation filled with great uncertainty, these wise words of Franklin would continually cut through the cacophony of chaos as they spoke directly to the souls of those who would heed his encouraging yet cautionary guidance on that Philadelphia evening.

Now, nearly 250 years later, Americans find our homeland again in a place of ambivalence. Even though our republic has matured, she is working though an identity crisis that leaves many people of faith scratching our heads in confusion. The moral fabric that once made our country great is being torn into pieces, and the temptation for many is to surrender in defeat or isolate into “holy huddles” and wipe their hands clean of the cultural chaos. Perhaps such retreat is exactly what led to the mess in which we find ourselves.

According to research reported by Wall Builders and The Barna Group in September 2024, projections indicate that only 50% of those who identify as “Christian” plan to vote in the 2024 election. Comparatively, in the previous three presidential elections, an average of 56.5% of Christian Americans voted. Sadly, only 61% of those Christians who answered the survey said they vote in every election. That means that four out of every 10 people who identify as Christian are not fulfilling their civic and patriotic duty to vote on a regular basis.

These figures are clearly indicative that millions of Christians are simply not voting and do not plan to vote in this current election. In fact, 52% of those who gave a reason they might not vote said it was because “No candidate reflects [their] views.” Remarkably, 43% of Christians who may not vote explained that “One vote doesn’t make a difference.”

When people of faith abandon the civic arena and abdicate our God-given role in society, our influence is lost and the culture decays. This is because God’s Word, the Bible, provides us with a clear roadmap of how God desires us to live and relate to each other in a way that brings about the greater good and promotes human flourishing. 

Whether Christians who choose not to vote do so because they are disinterested, feel disenfranchised, or are dismayed by partisan political rancor, it is evident that our country needs Christians to be influential in every sphere. Yes, even the civic sphere!

John Stonestreet of the Colson Center recently wrote an article calling on people of faith to vote as an opportunity to “lessen evil.” For far too long, Christians have succumbed to the notion that when we vote we are always “choosing between the lesser of two evils.” Yes, it is true that Jesus isn’t running for political office, so candidates will always fall short of the standard of perfection. It is also true that when we are choosing who will best serve and represent us, we are looking at the principles they promote and how they will use their position to make the world around them a better place.

Certainly, there are political candidates who are champions of biblical principles and others who reject biblical principles. When the choice is clear, it is easy for people of faith to vote for the champion of their values. But what is the Christian to do when it appears there is no distinct champion? When faced with a difficult decision between candidates who don’t reflect their values, Christians must use discernment and wisdom to research which candidate will “lessen evil” in the city, county, state, or country they serve.

For people of faith who are baffled by the bizarre world that we are living in, don’t forget that our ultimate citizenship is in the Kingdom of God. As citizens of Heaven, we are called to live in this world as ambassadors of our eternal home. John Piper has said that our goal is to “make God look glorious in this land where we live temporarily as aliens and sojourners.” With the time we have here on this earth, we have the opportunity to be difference makers for God’s Kingdom in our society.

We can make a difference by loving our neighbor, helping the broken, and by being a good citizen. As citizens of North Carolina and the United States we have been blessed with the opportunity and freedom to choose officials who will represent and govern us. People of faith cannot sit idly by without voting and wonder how the world around them has changed. Now more than ever, it is essential for people of faith to vote for candidates who best represent their principles.

Men and women of courage, conviction, and faith must show up to vote if we want to preserve the culture as a healthy place to live, work, and raise our families. When you go vote, vote for candidates that most closely align with your biblical worldview. By doing so, you will bless your family and your neighbors and lessen evil in our state and nation.

In this way, we can help to “keep” the republic our founders fought so hard to establish.