Is God in Politics?

I'm trying to pull out of the Safeway parking lot and this woman is doing this weird driving thing where she's going really fast towards me, then she slows down to a creeping crawl for no apparent reason. She's doing this accelerate-slow down-accelerate dance that is downright confusing to any driver around her.

Okay, I am very well aware that I have some "other driver judgment" to work through. Bad drivers make me crazy. So here I am, blood pressure rising, muttering under my breath (no, I will not tell you what I was muttering) when, suddenly, I see a political bumper sticker on her back window. It has my presidential candidate of choice on it.

Literally that second, I went from feeling antagonism to kinship with this other driver. I relaxed. I thought, "Oh, she can't be that bad!" I immediately stopped judging her driving and felt a common bond with her.

It then hit me, that whenever I see the opposing candidate's bumper stickers I immediately begin to judge the person behind the wheel. I already don't like you because your politics are "wrong."

Yikes! Is that really me?! I'm the one who teaches oneness and unity and love for all humankind. Do I really let a little sticky piece of paper play with my emotions and my thinking? Yep. I sure do.

So, all of this happened last week. This week, I'm saying a prayer of blessing for every driver with a bumper sticker, no matter which political persuasion. I refuse to judge like that any longer.

I will continue to feel strongly about my candidate of choice. I might even debate a few people regarding the merits of the platforms. I still get to be passionate about politics. I just have the opportunity to allow others the same passion, even if their views are different from mine.

I relax in the knowledge that God is in all people, working for the best possible outcomes for all of humanity. Is God in politics? You betcha! Remembering to relax in God and release judgment was my lesson last week.

I wonder what's coming this week!

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