1 Chronicles 22:9-13  But you will have a son who will be a man of peace and rest, and I will give him rest from all his enemies on every side. His name will be Solomon, and I will grant Israel peace and quiet during his reign. He is the one who will build a house for my Name. He will be my son, and I will be his father. And I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel forever.’ “Now, my son, the Lord be with you, and may you have success and build the house of the Lord your God, as he said you would. May the Lord give you discretion and understanding when he puts you in command over Israel, so that you may keep the law of the Lord your God. Then you will have success if you are careful to observe the decrees and laws that the Lord gave Moses for Israel. Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged.”

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Tomorrow is Election Day. Again. This means if you live in Texas and turn on a radio or television today, you will hear nonstop advertisements for men and women running for office. These individuals are truly evil according to their opponents. How in the world could these people ever get nominated to run for the positions they seek? 

Listen carefully to a few advertisements before you shut off live broadcasts in favor of podcasts or easy-listening music to soothe your ruffled feathers. Here is a double-dog dare: Find a person running for office who does not promise to fight for you. Herein lies the problem. Our politicians prefer fighting over reasoning. They choose to destroy one another rather than seek common ground. 

Wouldn’t it be nice to have a politician like Solomon instead? God calls him “a man of peace and rest.” His name even sounds like the word for peace. Here is how David prayed for his son: He asked God to give him discretion and understanding. He charged his son to “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged.” These were Moses’ words to Joshua at the point of their leadership transition. 

What if we had some men and women running for office who were peaceful, discreet, wise, strong, and courageous? Wouldn’t that be refreshingly different? Why settle for anything less? 

These are good characteristics for those in public office. They are also good characteristics for moms and dads, sons and daughters, employers and employees, friends and neighbors. If we want more peace, let us live more peacefully. Let us live at peace with everyone as far as it depends on us.

Does our community require more discretion and understanding? Let us demonstrate these characteristics in our daily dealings. 

Do we need more strength and courage so that we can stand against the people and problems deeply damaging our lives, our families, and our communities? Let us show the way with our examples.

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I will live my life in a manner consistently characterized by peace, discretion, and understanding. 

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Our Father, we want more peace. Make us more peaceful. We want more discretion and understanding. Make us more discreet and understanding. We want more strength and courage. Give us more strength and courage for the challenges before us. Amen.