I am a Christian, conservative, libertarian, and patriot. As you might expect, I have a number of friends who are the same.
I’m getting mildly annoyed with their disappointment in President Trump – already – in his first few days in office. If he doesn’t do everything they would do (or I would do), and then if he does things that seem contrary to what they would do (or I would do), they instantly become disappointed, and in some cases angry.
The problem is with their expectations. Anytime someone feels disappointed, upset, or angry, it’s because of an expectation that hasn’t been met. This is one of the facts of life, and sometimes that expectation was set by the person they are disappointed in, therefore justifying the disappointment. Other times, the expectation was set by the disappointed person, based on expectations they projected onto the person who disappointed them. In this case, their disappointment is NOT justified.
Most of the disappointed people I know expected Trump to be like “King Josiah,” who, in the Old Testament, did all the right things concerning honoring God’s commands and national patriotism. He was borderline perfect. Any mom in Israel would be proud to say to her son, “My prayer for you is that you turn out someday to be like King Josiah.”
Trump is no Josiah. Like the rest of us, he is a flawed human, who makes mostly good decisions, but also some bad decisions.
Trump is more like King Jehu who fulfilled some of God’s commands, such as eliminating Ahab’s Dynasty and ending Baal worship (even turning the Baal temple into a toilet). He also had Queen Jezebel executed, who led Israel into deep wickedness and killed most of God’s prophets.
Josiah made some mistakes too. He did not remove the golden calf idols in two key locations. He allowed other false worship to persist, most likely for political gain. As a result, Israel did not achieve the spiritual revival many had hoped for, but Josiah did reverse the course of evil drastically with significant reforms, bringing the nation back from the brink of certain collapse and annihilation.
Our nation had a choice in the election of 2024, between a Jehu or a Jezebel. Since a Josiah wasn’t on the ballot, we chose the Jehu.
If you voted for Trump, and you think you voted for a Josiah, it’s time for a reality check: You voted for a Jehu.
The good news is, that is infinitely better than a Jezebel, so you made the right choice, but don’t put your Josiah expectations on Trump because you will be disappointed.
Since you voted for a Jehu, you can expect Jehu results. With some key good decisions, Trump has a chance of bringing the USA back from the brink of collapse. Kamala would have accelerated it.
Trump will also make bad decisions, so don’t expect a complete reversal in four years. We will make progress, and we will have another chance in four years to make another good choice. Hopefully, that choice will be more of a Josiah, but even if it’s another Jehu, I’m good with that if there’s another Jezebel on the other side of the ballot.
Lastly, I composed the song below (with help from AI) about King Jehu, imagining people judged his decisions back then like we do Trump’s now. I certainly don’t like some of Trump’s decisions, but when I’m feeling “judgy,” I play back my song to remind myself that I likely couldn’t do any better (and maybe even worse). Then I say a prayer for Trump, that God will give him wisdom and discernment. 🙏
P.S. If you are wondering what a “King Josiah” example would look like, the world is fortunate enough to have one at this time. Nayib Bukele, the current president of El Salvador is such a man. My fervent prayers will be for both Trump and Bukele, as well as Javier Milei, the President of Argentina, who is another “Jehu” example. Through God’s power and blessing, these three men can literally change the entire world. Please pray for them as well.
