In less than 24 hours, Americans will go to the polls to decide the most important and decisive presidential and Congressional election since 1860. The stakes are high and the country is deeply divided. Many evangelical Christians are fired up and heavily engaged in this election, feeling strongly for one candidate or the other. Other Christians are disappointed by the choices and feeling unmotivated to turn out at the polls at all on Tuesday. They’re wondering, “Does my vote matter? What’s the point? Should Christians be involved in the political process at all, or should we just say to both political parties, ‘A pox on both your houses?'” 

Having lived and worked in Washington, D.C., for more than two decades and having had the opportunity to work inside the world of policy and politics as a follower of Jesus Christ, I have come to several conclusions about what role all Americans—and particularly…