If all hope was gone, would you keep fighting?

This question is presented in the marketing copy for my latest novel, The Pursuit. Given the current state of affairs in the United States, it’s a question that resonates.

 The Pursuit wasn’t easy to write. Weaving together plot threads from an entire series and crafting a satisfying (I hope you think so!) ending to my Emancipation Warriors series was a challenge.

But there was a far more distressing aspect. With each passing month since I began writing the series in 2009, the United States of America rockets toward an eerily similar version of the fictional scenario I created in the futuristic United Regions of North America.

It’s no surprise that a country that refuses to accept the authority of God’s word also rejects the authority of it’s own Constitution. By embracing what some believe to be freedom, we choke the life out of liberty and choose tyranny.

During her ordeal in the Emancipation Warriors series, Vivica learns the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness come from God—not a government. It’s the government’s job to protect those rights, and it’s up to the people to ensure the government does, often at a great personal cost.

However, there’s something else I realized as I wrote the final portion of Vivica’s story: Pursuing happiness means surrendering to God’s will for our lives and trusting him with the outcomes.

Even the outcomes that appear hopeless.

No matter what our country’s future, our greatest hope comes from Jesus Christ who died so we might experience freedom from sin and have eternal life. Nevertheless, as Christians, we don’t have to accept the worst-case scenario that all is lost and hunker down until Jesus comes. What kind of faith would we have if we did that?

We must repent of our sins and never stop praying for God to heal our nation. We must preach the Gospel and study the Bible. We must not confuse good and evil. We must vote for men and women of integrity.

So as my fictional scenario becomes more real, my answer is yes. I’ll keep fighting.

Will you?