Typically in December we reflect on the year behind us and look forward to the year ahead. It is a time to assess our triumphs and to analyze our failures – all in an effort to do better in the future. After a more than interesting presidential campaign, expectations for many are high, while disappointments for others are at a all time low.

Expectations are not reality

Like many, I find it tempting to be swept away with all the hype regarding cabinet and staff appointments for our newly elected president to be. Since I’ve never tried to read tea leaves, I prefer to turn my attention to what our new president will do rather than who is entering the doors of his opulent residences. Yes, I am more than relieved that Hillary will not be our first woman president, but there is much work that lies ahead and the temptation to compromise often slays the most noble of intentions.

I am writing this, not to throw a wet blanket on the excitement of Trump supporters, but to remind all of us that the election of Donald J. Trump instead of Hillary Rodham Clinton can be interpreted as a reprieve from Almighty God. I pray that we will use it wisely, for the future judgment of America may lie in the balance. Reprieves are a matter of grace and not a matter of entitlement. This is not the time to “feel” all is now right with the world and we can go back to our comfortable homes and enjoy our favorite TV shows.

What remains ahead

This is the time to roll up our sleeves and press for the repeal – or at least the regulation – of Roe v. Wade. It is time we press government to protect the rights of our citizens over the rights of undocumented immigrants and refugees. It is time we press government to take care of those who have sacrificed life and limb to protect our nation. It is time we press government to repeal the 1954 Johnson Amendment that stole the voice of our churches. (Which Donald Trump specifically promises to do. – Ed.) It is time we press government to keep their hands off our kids and their education and our healthcare, and to stop infringing on our constitutional rights, such as the right to keep and bear arms.

To be sure, America has a chance to prove herself worthy of God’s reprieve and not be as King Hezekiah who was content to know that things would go well within his lifetime. We Americans have been blessed but to whom much is given, much is required. I pray we will not forget that President-elect Trump needs our support as well as our continued pressure to fulfill the many promises he made on the campaign trail.

Hold him to his promises

There may be reason to rejoice for what average Americans have accomplished with the election of Donald J.Trump. But as of yet, there is no reason to rejoice over the accomplishments of the things listed above. Trump has promised to be our champion. It’s our job to hold him to his promises. We must also be sure to keep those goals clearly in mind and not lose himself in the minutia of sensationalism. I pray America will prove worthy of our reprieve and become the shining city on a hill that we always aspired to be but somehow always fell short of attaining. While the campaign may be behind us, the time to pray without ceasing has just begun. The cries of the unborn and the prosperity and safety of future generations are depending upon our commitment to once again birth the American experiment where God reigns and liberty flourishes.

Reprint from The Daily Rant, copyright 2016 Mychal Massie, by permission.