4 Daily Practices To Survive The Next Four Years
I’m not going to sugarcoat it, this week has been hard. I wasn’t exactly surprised, but I do feel disappointed — even a little defeated.
But here’s what I keep coming back to: Jesus lived in equally turbulent times. He and his followers faced an actual empire — one that would eventually execute him. They lived under a system that privileged the wealthy few while exploiting the many. Sound familiar?
Yet Jesus didn’t respond with despair. He responded with love. And he gave us a blueprint for maintaining hope even in the darkest times. And for this week’s message, I wanted to share four practices that are absolutely essential for surviving what comes next.
#1. Center Yourself in Love
Jesus was crystal clear about what matters most: Love God with all your heart, and love your neighbors as yourself. This isn’t just a nice suggestion — it’s a radical reorientation of how we move through the world.
When I find myself spiraling about the state of things, I try to pause and ask: Am I operating from a place of love right now, or am I operating from a place of fear? Fear makes us reactive. Love makes us responsive.
Try this: Start each day by saying to yourself “I am a loving person.” When you encounter someone who supports policies or politicians you oppose, remind yourself that they too are a child of God (even if they’re acting pretty unlovable). This doesn’t mean accepting or enabling harmful behavior. But it does mean refusing to let hatred take root in your own heart.
#2. Build Real Community
One of the most radical things Jesus did was create an alternative community, one based on love and mutual care rather than hierarchy and exploitation. He knew we need each other to survive and thrive — and that remains true today.
Right now, many of us feel isolated in our anxiety about the future. Social media can make us feel connected, but it can also leave us feeling more alone. We need real human connection: people we can pray with, cry with, laugh with, and work for change with.
This might look like going out with friends for a coffee, calling up an old friend or family member you haven’t spoke to in a while, joining a local organization that’s working for positive change, or doing some volunteer work at a local charity (like a food pantry).
I encourage you to do this, especially when you don’t feel like it. It’s precisely when we don’t want to be vulnerable that we should be. That’s where real friendship, and thus community, blossoms.
Remember: The Kingdom of God isn’t brought by God, and it’s not something that comes through purely political power. It comes through communities of people choosing to live differently — choosing love over fear, cooperation over competition, enough for everyone over excess for a few.
#3. Practice Perspective
Sometimes its hard to remember that the sun still shines even when we’re lost in the middle of a storm. In the story of Jesus calming the storm, we’re told that while his disciples were freaking out, he remained calm. Not because the storm wasn’t real, but because he had a deeper perspective on reality.
(This, by the way, is the real point of that story. It’s a metaphor. Whether or not Jesus had other-worldly powers to calm a storm doesn’t actually matter. The point is to trust God, especially when it’s hard.)
We need the kind of perspective Jesus had today. Yes, things are scary. But panic doesn’t help us respond effectively. Neither does despair. It’s okay to feel these things, but try to feel them and let them go. Don’t expect not to feel sad, but don’t hang on to that feeling.
Because the truth is that we don’t know what comes next. We must absolutely do our best to effect the outcome, but in the end, the outcome is up to God, not us.
For example, I was crushed after the 2004 election. I thought for sure Americans would reject an idiot war criminal as commander in chief. They didn’t. They voted in record numbers for him.
But there was no one — absolutely no one — who could have predicted on November 3, 2004, that in just four years, our nation would elect a Black man, with the middle name Hussein, as president in a landslide victory.
The point? We don’t know what happens next. The outcome is not up to us. Accepting that perspective, as hard as it is, can truly change your life.
#4. Chose Hope, Because Hope is Resistance
This one is hard. But it’s crucial.
Making the choice to hope isn’t about denying reality or pretending everything is fine. It’s about refusing to let the powers of death and destruction have the last word.
Every morning when we wake up, we have a choice about how we’ll face the day. We can choose hope not because everything is perfect, but because we believe in the power of love to transform the world.
This isn’t just optimism. It’s an act of resistance. When we choose hope, we deny the empire’s power to crush our spirits. When we choose love, we participate in God’s ongoing work of liberation and renewal.
So yes, stay engaged. Vote. Protest. Speak up. Work for change. But do it from a place of grounded hope rather than frantic fear. Do it as part of a beloved community. Do it because you know that love is stronger than hate, that light is stronger than darkness, that resurrection follows crucifixion.
The powers-that-be want us to feel hopeless. They want us paralyzed by anxiety and despair. Choosing hope — real, active, love-centered hope — is how we resist.
Remember: You are not alone in this. We’re in it together. And love will have the final word.
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