Peace Over Election Anxiety: Brant Hansen

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Choosing Peace Over Election Anxiety

Guest:Brant Hansen

From the series:Choosing Peace Over Election Anxiety (Day 1 of 1)

Air date:November 1, 2024

Brant:The candidate that you’re not voting for, or candidates or whatever, pray for blessings for them. If you’re thinking, “Well, I can’t do that; that means not following Jesus.” This is His radical way; but do it and watch how that actually brings you peace.

Shelby: Welcome to FamilyLife Today, where we want to help you pursue the relationships that matter most. I’m Shelby Abbott, and your hosts are Dave and Ann Wilson. You can find us at FamilyLifeToday.com.

Ann: This is FamilyLife Today.

Dave:So in a few days we’re going to elect the president, not you and I, but the country. We’re going to elect the president.

Ann: Do you think there’s anxiety going around because of this? Do you feel anxious?

Dave: I was literally just thinking I should write a song called Election Day Anxiety. That would be a hit.

Ann: Could you write it with our friend Brant Hansen?

Dave:Yeah, he’s right here. I think he could write it.

Brant: It might be in a minor key.

Dave: It would definitely be in a minor key. Well, I mean, yeah, it’s Friday. We’re going to get through the weekend and we’re going to the polls and we’re all feeling different things and a lot of anxiety right now, right?

Brant:Well, it’s literally a thing for counselors. Election anxiety is what they call it.

Dave: Really?

Brant: —can literally see. Oh yeah.

Dave: That I didn’t know.

Ann: I didn’t know that either.

Brant: Yeah, that’s how people are feeling about this.

Ann: Let’s talk about, why is that a thing? What are the things people are anxious about?

Brant:Well, here’s where this thing called joy matters if you’re a Jesus person because you can get caught up in—the culture is anxious and you can understand why, because there’s a lot at stake. There are big issues. It’s not about ignoring the fact that there are issues, but the idea of joy, and I keep defaulting to Dallas Willard’s definition of it, but he said it’s a pervasive sense of wellbeing regardless of circumstances.

Ann: That’s good.

Brant:So the culture can’t do that at large. The news media, whatever angle they’re coming from does not want you at peace. But here’s people in the New Testament being told, pray about everything, but don’t be anxious for anything. Instead, you’re supposed to tell God what you need, thank Him for what He has done, and then experience His peace, which exceeds our experience of anything else because it’s in Christ Jesus.

That’s what we’re told. So this is when it counts. If you’re like, “Yeah, but I’m anxious about this.” Right, right, now this is where the joy would matter. This is where we would be very different because we’re not thrown about by the vicissitudes of the elections or current events or even major world events. We as believers in Jesus are different. So this is when the joy thing actually matters and people will notice it.

And again, it’s not saying we don’t care. It’s not saying these issues don’t matter. It’s just that my peace does not depend on what happens on Tuesday or any Tuesday. It’s rooted in the kingdom of God, which is going to outlast everything. That is a strong place to be. So honestly, I would just like to remind people, if you’re somebody who trusts God, you’re in a strong place. You have every reason to be joyful, no matter what happens, ever. I just think sometimes we forget just what good place we’re actually in.

Ann: So why aren’t we? Why don’t we tap into that joy?

Brant: Well, a lot of it’s what we pay attention to, what you’re focusing on

Ann: Yes, like that determines a lot of my day.

Brant: Yes!

Ann: If you get stuck just listening to the news or being on any kind of social media, I mean emotions are high.

Brant:What you put your attention on determines who you’re becoming. Make no mistake, because we’re all being formed by something. No one’s just static. You’re being formed by what you pay attention to.

So if:

you’re paying attention to the kingdom:

you’re thinking about God,

you’re talking with Him,

you are pursuing Him.

Maybe memorizing scripture I think is a great idea, great idea, and rolling that over in your head,

you’re going to be at a very different place than if you’re just absorbing news and scrolling and watching the news. That’s just a fact.

Dave:Are you saying don’t watch Fox News, CNN, don’t read the New York Times? Are you saying stay away?

Brant:I’m saying this. Attention is like anything else that’s powerful. Be careful where you aim that thing. Again, this determines life and death. And this is not something that’s just new psychology or something. This is biblical; what we put our minds on to capture our thoughts. And literally when Paul says that; be anxious for nothing. So if you’re anxious about stuff, talk to God about it. Tell him what you need and then genius move here: thank Him for all He has done. You rotate to gratitude. So now you’re not so anxious anymore; as soon as you start being grateful, “Lord, I got so much to be thankful for.”

Ann: I’m just going to read Philippians 4:6,7 because it is like one of my all-time favorite verses. And it is—

Dave:Read it slow.

Ann: I’m going to read it because this is my go-to verse when I’m anxious. I’m going to admit I do get a little anxious with this election coming up. I can get anxious even with my friends and family. They may be in a totally different place of what they’re hoping. So Philippians 4:6,7 says, “Do not be anxious about anything,” about anything, “but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” That’s one to memorize right there.

Brant:That’s a great thing. So memorization is so great. I think I told you guys, but I think it’s the most punk rock thing you can do in this culture.

Dave:Punk rock. What do you mean?

Brant:Yeah, it’s kind of a dated reference, but it’s like they can’t take it away from you. Nobody can. You can take it with you wherever you are. You’re on a plane; you can rehearse this in your mind. You can go back over these things. You can take what’s true with you and you know it’s true and it becomes part of you. I’ve never been great at it, but I’ve been better at it the last couple of years. I’ve got like that scripture is always rolling around in my head or Psalm 23:1 or all of Psalm 23; is six verses.

Ann: Yeah.

Dave:The Lord is my shepherd.

Brant:—is my shepherd. I lack nothing. That’s what it starts with.

Ann: That’s good.

Brant:I have what I need because of him. I don’t need to be anxious. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I’ll fear no evil because you’re with me, no matter what. And so if people are like, “Well, yeah, that’s all fine and good, but do you realize these issues we got?” Nothing is new under the sun, nothing. The stuff that Paul is writing when he’s writing to Thessalonians—what you just read—

Ann: Oh yeah.

Brant:—what are they going through? They have no voice in government. They could lose their lives at any moment, lose their income. Their families could be split up because of their belief in Jesus. He’s literally writing to these people at that time saying, be anxious for nothing. Instead tell God what you need and thank Him for what He’s done. If we’re like, we live in this utterly unique time, it’s not true.

Ann: Think about what Nero was doing with the believers, the Christians. He was burning them and using them as torches at his parties. I’d say that’s kind of anxiety filled if you’re a believer.

Brant:Well, how about Jesus telling his disciples, “You’re going to have trouble in this world, but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world.” I want to remind you of that as you’re listening right now, because He knows what they’re going to go through, his friends, but be of good cheer. I’ve overcome the world. I literally picture him winking like be of good cheer. I know how this ends. You’re going to like it.

Ann: He’s not worried.

Brant:God is not worried. He is not up in heaven, like, [shaky voice] “I don’t know what’s going to happen.”

Ann: Like, “Who’s going to be elected?”

Brant:Right. Honestly, think about that. If He’s not worried and you belong to Him, what kind of strong place are you in? So what we have to do is love people. We don’t have to be under the gun. That anxiety honestly will keep us from actually loving people and from being at peace ourselves, but we’re in a strong place.

Ann: I do this as a mom. I don’t know if other people do this, but I think forward into the future. Like Dave and I are older, but I’m thinking of, what kind of world will my kids and my grandkids be living in? And then I have to go to, because I can go off into a rabbit trail of worry and fear about that, but that’s exactly what you said, Brant. God’s not worried. And He also created our grandkids and our kids in our mother’s wombs. He knows what they will face, and He knew that when He created them. And so I’m like, “Oh, well, then He’s created them in a way. Maybe they have a purpose no matter what our world is like to live in the world, to be a light of Jesus to the world.

Brant:Well, and if your attention though is always on the anxiety of the larger culture that we’ve just absorbed, if we don’t fight it, the news—

Ann: What do you mean by that?

Brant:Well, it’s just anxiety is everywhere. Everybody’s on edge. All you have to do is go on social media.

Ann: You’re saying we’ll absorb that.

Brant:Yeah, unless we’re actively combating that with the truth of scripture frankly, and being in relationship with other believers, what we can encourage each other, and talking to God about this stuff, having this conversation with him about it. But you will absorb it unless you’re actively trying not to.

Ann: That’s good.

Brant:But I look at Lamentations. So here’s Jeremiah, everything’s falling apart. The thing is being destroyed in front of his eyes. His nation’s being destroyed and he’s lamenting it, hence Lamentations. But he stops himself and says, yet I call this to mind. He calls it to mind. He actively—

Dave:—brings it forward.

Brant:—brings this forward. I call this to mind and therefore I have hope, like colon right there. Here’s what it is, because of the Lord’s great love for us we are not consumed. His faithfulness lasts forever. It’s everlasting. His mercies are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness, oh Lord. So literally he can see the news of the day and he calls this to mind. We’re not consumed. So I believe Jesus is telling the truth when he says we don’t need to be anxious.

Dave:Yeah. Well, I was thinking as I was listening to you, Brandt, I thought there’s a math equation here. I’ve never thought of this before, but it’s obvious; anxiety is directly connected to what we focus on.

Brant:Yeah.

Dave:That’s not debatable. Anxiety is directly connected to what we focus on, whatever you’re focused on. If it’s the word of God, everything we’ve just been saying, your anxiety goes down. If it’s Twitter, social media, and again, those are good things. There’s nothing wrong with those. You’re going to get information on TV, but I know when I open Twitter, if I open it up right now, my anxiety’s going up. I will watch and hear and see things and I might go or the news. And I’m not saying we don’t connect to those things. Those are important but if that’s dominating my focus compared to my eyes turning vertical, turning toward the word of God and God himself, I’m going to be nervous and anxious all the time. All the time.

Brant:It stands to reason. And if somebody’s thinking, “Well, I have a clinical anxious issue I’m dealing with,” I’m not going to speak from a medical standpoint. I will tell you this, the things we’re talking about, you’ll be a less anxious sort of person for all of us. All of us will be less anxious when we concentrate on the word of God. There is a peace.

Ann: For sure.

Brant:Yes. There is a sense of wellbeing regardless of circumstances that we can see even when Steven is being stoned in Acts, for instance, there’s all these different examples of we can imagine the worst-case scenarios, but Jesus is telling us we can be of good cheer because He’s overcome the world. He knows the worst-case scenarios. He knows this.

Ann: And we know who wins ultimately in the end.

Brant:Ultimately, we are safe with him.

Ann: Yeah. I mean eternally not the election.

Brant:Oh, right, right.

Ann: Jesus wins.

Brant:This is correct. I think because we can be in a strong place where we can put our attention on these truths about who God is and trust Him. Trusting God just means: you know what, I know enough about Him that even if I don’t have all the answers, I trust His character. I’m going with that. He’s actually good. He actually does love us, and He actually does know how this ends and He’s got our back.

Ann: Let me ask both of you, how do you take your thoughts captive? How do you capture them specifically? Because somebody’s thinking, I try to do all this, but then my mind gets back into the worries. How do you guys do that?

Brant:Well, I think for me it’s becoming aware of, “Wait a second, I’m doing this again. I’m doing this thing again where I’m anxious again. Wait a second, why?” And then, “Oh, I’m supposed to talk to God about it, tell Him what I need, and then thank Him for what He has done.”

Ann: That’s good.

Brant:This gratitude piece is not a side issue, honestly. It’s not a throwaway thing. It’s like you will be less anxious when you’re listing reasons and remembering things. The horrible loss is like you were talking about, I could be anxious for the next generation and then my grandkids and their grandkids and meantime, they’re here. You could be enjoying them. I have this day with them or with whoever’s around me, people I’m thankful for. Instead of worrying about what could happen down the line, I have this day with them. So it actually robs you of gratitude.

So when you are grateful, when you deliberately capture your thought and turn it into gratitude, it chases out anxiety. It’s very difficult to be thankful and anxious at the same time. And we’re told this repeatedly, God doesn’t want us to thank him because he’s desperate. “Could you thank me, please? I’m just not appreciated.” He’s telling us that for our own good because He knows that we thrive when we’re grateful. So all through scripture, there’s so much about giving thanks over and over and over. It’s for us. He knows that this is a way for us to be at peace.

Dave:I have this mental picture in my mind. I sort of grab that thought. I literally take my hands sometimes and I’m going toward anxiety. I’m going toward the world’s falling. It’s caving in. It’s like we’re not going to be able to stop this freight train from destroying our… It’s like I grab it and replace it with the word of God, whether it’s what we read today, Philippians 4 or any truth.

And another thing I do is worship. Sometimes I literally fall on my knees in my studio, in my bedroom and just sing a praise chorus, just listen to worship music, just get my eyes off the horizontal and get them back on what scripture does and the writers of scripture kept doing for us to say, “Get your eyes on the One who’s in control.”

Brant:Yeah.

Dave:He can be trusted.

Brant:And they’re not being naïve.

Dave:Right.

Brant:It’s not like, “Well, they just didn’t know about this latest thing.” No. They know about kingdoms that rise and fall. They know about human suffering. God knows all about that. And He’s the one telling us, “With me, you’re safe.” Your eternal life has already started.

Ann: Our hope lies in Him, not in who’s elected or what’s happening. He is our hope.

Brant:Ever.

Ann: Yeah.

Dave:What do you do if you’ve got family members who aren’t on the journey you’re on? They are tapping into the anxiety and they’re around you. How do you relate to that?

Brant:You can’t control them.

Ann: I like to try to control them.

Brant:I presume we’re not talking about young children, but if it’s like older people, you can’t control them, but you can suggest sometimes.

Ann: And the other thing you do, Brant, is you judge them. It’s so easy to judge them, like, “How can you even think like this?”

Brant:I have voiced things to loved ones about their news intake. We need people at peace. And it hurts me to think that those 24/7 channels, their average viewer is 70.

Ann: Is that right?

Brant:Yes. So we need that generation to be the ones at peace. And unfortunately, they are consuming more than anybody else. And that’s a huge loss for us. I especially—

Ann: Because what? Instead of doing that, they could be what?

Brant:They could be setting an example in peace and love. And I say these words not as throwaway words but having this deep sense of wellbeing regardless of circumstances. Because you’ve been through so much. You’ve seen it. We’re supposed to draw on your strength.

Dave:Yeah, like lead us.

Brant:Yes. It makes everybody else more anxious when older folks are consumed with the here and now.

Ann: And the catastrophes that could be coming. That doesn’t do anybody any good.

Brant:No, we need you at peace. And again, it’s not naivete. It’s the opposite of that. It’s not lack of knowledge, that’s why you’re at peace. You just aren’t aware. No, you’re aware. But you’re also aware of the kingdom of God and His goodness, His ultimate goodness that you can draw on. When Jesus takes His friends out on the boat, that was His idea, remember?

Dave:Yeah.

Brant:“Let’s go across the lake, you guys.” He knows there’s going to be a storm; He knows.

Ann: And He’s sleeping.

Brant:Yes, knowing, just to see, I think, to see, how are these guys going to handle this, and they failed. But He was like, “Hey, where did you put that faith that you said you had? Where did that go?”

Ann: When you just saw me feed—

Brant:Yeah, where’s your faith? He asked him, where did that go after He calms the sea. And I think for us too, it’s like, okay, you talked a big game about faith. Now is when it matters. You can’t suddenly just go, “Oh, oh, I don’t know.” No, no. This is when it matters. This is when the trusting actually matters, the trusting God. And the beautiful thing about this is people will see that and they’re supposed to be so freaked out by us that they ask us for the reason for the hope that we have.

Ann: Oh, that’s good.

Brant:That’s what they’re supposed to ask about. Why are you so hopeful?

Dave: Or peaceful?

Brant: Peaceful. And again, that’s written to people in total tumult in the Roman Empire under persecution. So shouldn’t people now look at us and go, why are you guys so weirdly hopeful? Don’t you see how everything’s going down in flames? Don’t you see that? And we should be so weirdly hopeful they at least ask.

Dave:Wow, that is a great thought. We people of faith get to model for everyone around us this is how you can approach a world spinning out of control.

Brant:Yeah. Isn’t that wonderful?

Dave:We see it. We see the same thing you see. And guess what? There’s peace. There’s calm here.

Brant:Another way—

Dave:There’s hope.

Brant:Another way to get at peace too, I want to make sure to mention is pray for your enemies. The candidate that you’re not voting for, or candidates or whatever, pray for blessings for them. If you’re thinking, “Well, I can’t do that,” well, okay—

Ann: Some people are like, “No, I am not doing that.”

Brant:Alright. At least you’re being honest. But that means not following Jesus. This is the way of Jesus. This is His radical way. But do it and watch how that actually brings you peace. Because we are in a spiritual battle. It’s not flesh and blood.

Dave: We’re commanded to pray for them.

Ann: Pray for our leaders. Those in authority.

Brant:Pray for them personally to be at peace, to understand the peace of God so that they’d be blessed, and their families would be blessed. But this is a way, again, Jesus is telling us to do this. It’s a better way for us to live. We will be less anxious when we do it.

Ann: One of the things that Dave has always done in the pulpit as a pastor for 30 years is every time there is a new president, the Sunday after that election, he would pray for that new president, always. It didn’t matter who was elected, he would always pray for them.

Dave:And I always got in trouble.

Ann: Yes, you did.

Dave:People would come up and say, I can’t believe you prayed for— I said, “I prayed for the last one.”

Brant: I don’t understand.

Ann: No, you didn’t because now we—

Dave:“So that means you voted for him.” I’m like, “I’m not telling you who I voted for, but I’m going to pray for any President whether I wanted them to be the President or not. We are called to pray and not that their life would fall apart, that they’d be a blessing, that God would become real to them, that they would lead this nation in a way that honors the kingdom.”

Brant:Well, if you’re a disciple of Jesus, you want to be like Him and you do what He says. He’s not subtle about this, about praying for your enemies. So by praying for someone who wins that you didn’t like, or you think is evil, up to no good, you still do that. You don’t have a choice if you’re somebody who’s a Jesus disciple. If you’re not, well, then you can do whatever. But the way of Jesus is narrow. It’s easier. He said it. It’s lighter and easier. It’ll make your life better. But most people won’t opt into that.

Ann: I’m thinking of, I mean, if you’ve read the Old Testament, you’ve heard of King Darius. The Israelites were in exile to Babylon. And so now you have Daniel who is an Israelite, who is now second in command over the kingdom. And when Daniel is put in the lion’s den and he lives, King Darius signs a proclamation that from now on everyone will worship this God that Daniel worships because He saved him. And so he’s not a believer and yet the light of Daniel; I think of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego impacted the kingdom. And we can do that. We can be a light by the way we live, by our peace, by our joy. All the things you’re talking about, Brant, those are big things. It’s a light.

Brant:Yes. And again, people will think, some will listen and go, “That’s just naive.” It’s not. It’s the opposite. It’s knowing more, not less.

Here’s the other thing, your reactions, my reactions on social media or my statements about people. You can say the truth. You can say, “This is what I believe. This is why this is bad, or this is good.” But I would hope that somebody could read your tweet or read your post and be able to tell that you’re actually praying for that person. That should be consonant with our tones. You could still say the thing, but there’s a tone.

Honestly, I see a lot of true things that are said, but the tone, I’m like, there’s no way you’re praying for that person. You’re right. You got that person. But come on. I think that’s a big deal for believers right now, especially because no matter what happens in the election, there’s going to be disputes about it. There’s going to be further disputes from any side. So we’re going to be living in, I think, increasing tumult. I think that’s fair to say. But this is a chance for us to shine, for us to be at peace. This is where it actually matters.

Dave:This is when we are called to shine.

Brant:Yeah.

Dave:It’s too easy in good times. It’s when the world’s out of control, we should be the stable ones.

Ann: Man, and if you have kids still in your house, pray for this election, pray for this next president. Don’t allow your kids to feel the fear that you might be carrying. Let them know God is in control. We can trust Him. We can be at peace. He knows all things. He cares about us, and He loves us. But man, even to be careful to pray in a way that doesn’t show this animosity or anger or judgment toward the person that you don’t want to have elected.

Brant:Maybe tell them too, “Here’s what we believe. Here’s how we’re voting.”

Ann: That’s good.

Brant:“But we’re going to pray tonight for that other candidate.”

Dave: Yeah.

Ann: We’re going to pray for both.

Brant:Yes, for blessings on both of them, not just one. And we’re going to be at peace no matter what happens, because the kingdom of God is not shaken.

Ann: I like that. This is why we’re voting for this person even.

Brant:Your kids will remember that because it’s a stressful moment for everybody, but they’ll remember how you handle that. This is how you disciple people. And it’s us being discipled too, to go, “Okay, I’m learning how to be more like Jesus.” And He’s relaxed. Jesus is relaxed.

Ann: Guys, this has been good for me to hear because I get wound up, man.

Dave:She gets wound up.

Ann: I get a little Intense about the whole thing.

Dave:Not that I don’t.

Brant: I understand.

Dave: And I would end with this. Peace is a person. It’s Jesus. And if you want peace, get your eyes there because that’s where peace is. And one last thing, if you want a guide, Brant wrote these down, 12 points, or are there 13?

Brant:I kept adding. I’m up to 15 now.

Dave: Fifteen, well, they’re going to be on our website. If you want no election anxiety, go to FamilyLife.com/NoFear. How about that? No fear.

Brant:Love it.

Dave:And you can find Brant’s points there. I would print them out and put them somewhere in your house and during this election time, be looking at them. Focus on that rather than—

Ann: And put Philippians 4:6,7; write that out and put it by your mirror, on your refrigerator. Yeah, I think that’s a really good idea.

Dave:So again, that’s FamilyLife.com/NoFear.

Shelby: I’m Shelby Abbott, and you’ve been listening to Dave and Ann Wilson with Brant Hansen on FamilyLife Today. Yes. As Dave said, you could head over to FamilyLife.com/NoFear to help you alleviate some of that anxiety we’re feeling right now as we’re in election season. And you know what? A lot of us are tired of the tension and the division that exists in neighborhoods, on social media, family gatherings, maybe even around your own kitchen table right now.

Well, Psalm 133 tells us that it’s good for believers to live in unity with one another. The question is, how do we do that? It seems like such wishful thinking in such a divided time. Well, I’m really excited to invite you to join us here at FamilyLife® for a five-week video series from our friend, author, and comedian Amberly Neese. It’s called “Moving Toward Each Other in the Middle of a Divisive World.”

You could sign up today in the show notes or go to FamilyLife.com/FindingCommonGround. Again, head over to the show notes. You can find the link there or just go to FamilyLife.com/FindingCommonGround. Or if you can’t really remember all that, just go to FamilyLife.com/NoFear for Brant Hansen’s insight on how to deal with the fear that we naturally have during this election season.

Hey, do you follow us on social media? Well, if you’re on Instagram, find us at FamilyLife Insta. Or if you’re on Facebook, just search for FamilyLife for more regular encouragement from the ministry of FamilyLife.

Now, coming up next week, Tim Muehlhoff and Sean McDowell are going to be here to talk about moving past cancel culture to having meaningful conversations. Many of us don’t really know how to address everything that’s going on when it comes to difficult conversations and the fear of being canceled. Well, Tim and Sean are going to be here with the Wilsons to address that. We hope you’ll join us.

On behalf of Dave and Ann Wilson, I’m Shelby Abbott. We’ll see you back next time for another edition of FamilyLife Today.

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