By Jack Wyman

He published it in the winter.

“These are the times that try men’s souls.”

Thomas Paine wrote those words in December, 1776.

The colonies in America had in July that year declared their independence from the greatest economic and military power on earth. The war with England would wear on for eight long years. Only Vietnam lasted longer. Freedom would not be won easily.

Paine, in his introduction to The American Crisis, laid out the stakes and challenged his countrymen.

“The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.”

This was going to take courage. It was going to take conviction. It was going to take perseverance. The struggle for liberty and justice has never been for the timid.

Paine went on.

“Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered,” he wrote, “yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives everything its value.”

What is good is never easy. What is great is never cheap. Paine made the case for the sacrifice, effort and bravery called upon by the besieged but determined colonists.

“Heaven knows how to put a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as freedom should not be highly rated.”

Thomas Paine wrote it like it was. Like it is and like it shall forever be.

As we begin walking down this new annual corridor of 2022, many of us may feel like it is once again a time that tries our souls. The wavering economy, pandemic politics, crumbling education, global threats, cultural transformation, and bitter divisions threaten the essence and order of America. The Church finds itself increasingly challenged to maintain its relevance and moral authority.

As Paine observed, hell “is not easily conquered.”

You and I may sometimes be tempted to think that perhaps being a summer soldier might not be so bad. Being a sunshine patriot and languishing in the warm rays of ignorance and apathy, “far from the madding crowd”, could be of comfort to our fears and weariness.

It would be easier.

In the face of the seemingly insurmountable and perplexing, let’s quit.

That is the whisper of the devil.

This must never be for the Christian.

“Woe to them that are at ease in Zion!” (Amos 6:1).

You and I have not been called to some acculturated compromise with wrong. We’ve been called to “stand it now” because heaven itself has “put a proper price” on the advancement of its kingdom here on earth.

Referring to the command of our Lord, Charles Spurgeon wrote:

“A Christian is not to be a village in a valley, but ‘a city set on a hill’; he is not to be a candle under a bushel, but a candle in a candlestick, giving light to all.”

For the disciple of Jesus Christ, there is no other choice. No other way to live than to care for others. For our community, our state, our nation and to care for the world. Not to care is not to love; not to love is not to be a child of God.

Injustice, immorality and oppression are not “easily conquered” yet we are, as Mr. Paine reminds us, comforted to know “that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.”

Notwithstanding his professed atheism, Thomas Paine might be proud of Bunni Pounds.

An energetic and outgoing young woman brimming with hope and enthusiasm, Bunni is the Founder and President of Christians Engaged. Based in Texas but going national, it is a non-profit organization that encourages Christians to “pray for our nation and elected officials.”

It also encourages believers to “vote in every election in order to impact our culture”, and to “engage our hearts in some form of civic education and involvement for the well-being of our nation.”

When Bunni sought tax-exempt status for Christians Engaged, the IRS rejected her application, insisting that the group was a partisan outreach for Republicans. Not being a sunshine patriot, summer soldier - or shrinking violet - Bunni appealed.

Prayer, concern for one’s country and civic engagement in one’s community, she explained, are not partisan endeavors. In fact, they should draw all Americans together.

It’s not very often that the IRS admits being wrong, but it backed down and granted Christians Engaged its tax-exemption. 

Bunni calls on Christians to unite in prayer for our country and its leaders - whether we voted for them or not, whether we agree with them or not, regardless of their politics or policies. All our leaders need and deserve our prayers. The scriptures command us to do this as part of honoring those who are in civil authority.

Bunni and her team at Christians Engaged teach believers how to be a positive and redemptive influence in the public arena. How to persuasively argue their positions with respect and dignity, and how to disagree without being disagreeable.

We all need that in these troubled and divisive times.

If more of us prayed more faithfully for our political leaders perhaps we’d begin to listen and learn from one another. Perhaps we’d have better, wiser, and more dedicated men and women of integrity in public office.

So much is done by prayer.

God might even heal our land.

Though it was difficult and exacted a great price, hell has in fact been conquered. It’s been forever defeated, along with death and the devil, by our risen Lord Jesus Christ.

We battle a vanquished foe who, for all his present cruelty and power, is doomed.

Let’s always remember that.

Let’s “stand it now.”

Engage.

Can one person make a difference?

Yes, you can!

Ask Bunni Pounds.

Join our Christians Engaged family by taking the pledge to get our prayer texts each Monday, our voting reminders as elections happen, and our twice monthly emails with all of our educational resources.

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