First off, this is my second installment for the day, and no, it is highly unlikely I will even post once every day. Today, being the day you can cast your vote, just tugged at me and teased me enough to make a post about voting.
My view is that, as a follower of Christ, I have a responsibility to cast my vote. Jesus often refrained from political issues; why He did so is beyond my understanding at this point. To my best understanding, the times that He did address political issues was to reinforce the idea that God's law is above the laws of the land, but we are to respect and follow both. Matthew 22:21. To show my respect to both laws, I vote with the idea in mind that I can put my two-cents worth in to vote for an impact to affect potential laws that will coincide with the Higher Authority.
I see, for one example, the issue of legalizing abortion as a conflict of laws. God has chosen to bless someone with the gift of life. (You should know that I believe that God is in control and that everything He does is for a darn good reason.) Yes, I believe that a fetus or embryo (no matter what stage of life inside the womb) is alive - just because their skin has not yet been exposed to "the outside world" does not mean they are not yet "alive." In essence, choosing to terminate the life of this little person is, in my opinion, murder, and as a Christian, I cannot sit comfortably with this. It is my responsibility to stand up for what I believe in, otherwise, I am sitting passively by, allowing it to happen. Not cool with me. I cast my vote for candidates that will agree with me on that (of course there are multiple issues to consider for each candidate, so simply agreeing with this one view is not enough to gain my vote).
As a side note, here is where your opinion is greatly valued and requested: I think it is somewhat inconsistent to be for abortions but opposed to the death penalty, or vice-versa. To me, I see these two issues as similar. True, there are differing circumstances - the fetus has done nothing wrong, but the person sentenced to death has committed some heinous crime - but to me, both are terminating an opportunity. I always try my best to leave judgments and religious decisions up to God, as is the case here. I feel that it is not my place to say that a person does not deserve a chance to receive the gift of God (His love). Not everyone has accepted it, but it is my job as a Christian to make an impact. The man approaching the death penalty is the one that needs Jesus the most, and to terminate his life, to me, is saying, "You have had your chance. That opportunity to accept and receive the gift - you have wasted it to the point where you are beyond hope." I cannot sit in the judgment seat and strip that opportunity of him. I cannot deny the fetus an opportunity to be loved by others or to make a great impact on the world.
For some scriptural reference on death penalty and punishment, see Romans 13:1-4.
For scriptures on the life of the unborn, see Psalm 139:13 "for you knit me in my mother's womb" (how special is that!!!) and see also the disapproval of harming the unborn in Exodus 21:22-25.
What is your view on the death penalty v. abortion?
To wrap things up, my vote, as I see my Christian responsibility, is in the name of love for others. 1 John 4:19: We show others love because Christ FIRST loved us. Powerful scripture. Indeed, economic stimulation is important, but there is a bigger picture in life. The way we love others (by giving them a chance and to share Christian love) is simply more important than putting a dollar in a pocket (largely a greed issue).
This is my opinion.
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