Meet my assistant, Tammy. Tammy is a left-wing liberal Democrat. Is that okay to say in church? Sometimes just saying that out loud makes people question her faith, although the question remains - - does Jesus have a party affiliation? She was born in the blue-collar town of Akron, Ohio into a blue-collar family. Her Dad was a railroad engineer for the Pennsylvania Railroad and was a member of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers labor union. It was the 60’s, and the distinction between labor and management was evident in our political parties. The Democratic Party was the friend of the union worker, so she grew up in a home that voted “blue”.
As a Democrat for her entire life, she is a liberal-minded thinker. She is also a devout Christ follower and believes that convicting hearts to act in godly ways is the Holy Spirit’s job and not the government’s...
Tammy here. Meet my boss, Pastor Jason Neese. He is a right wing, 2nd amendment; don’t tread on me, conservative Republican. Jason grew up in the beautiful rural flatlands of Visalia, California. His dad and mom owned a small business, enjoying shooting, hunting fishing and the great outdoors. Someone suggested that he hire me as his assistant. One of his first questions to me was, “I hear you are a liberal. I’m a Republican. Do you think we can still work together?”
Yes, of course. Though we both hold onto our political beliefs firmly, we believe that every day, we can set political issues aside for the sake of the gospel. Political issues are earthly, and spiritual issues are Eternal. Though our life experiences have conditioned us to view many issues through different lenses, there is a bridge between our ideological differences, and his name is Jesus.
Although we don’t agree on hardly anything politically, we do agree on Jesus. We agree on the importance of the work we do in the community and the love we have for our team. We both believe that the only hope for fixing a broken world will not come from Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton, but from the power of the gospel impacting people’s hearts with Christ’s all consuming love. In other words, don’t put your faith in the left wing or the right wing, when the bird is dead! The only wings we can trust are the wings of God, where we can take refuge. (Psalm 36)
And so, day-to-day, we work side by side. We do not merely tolerate one another; we genuinely care about one another. Our families love each other, we are close friends, and people often tell us that they envy our working relationship.
In November, we will most likely cancel out each other’s votes. But the next day, we will be back at it, working side by side, for the sake of the gospel. (Loser buys the Starbucks, buddy.)
As you walk out into the world today, look for common ground with people on the other side of the aisle and concentrate on what you have in common rather than what divides you. Love with Jesus’ love. That is the only remedy for a wounded, hurting nation.
By Jason Neese and Tammy Waite
Jason currently serves as the Rock Church’s Associate Campus Pastor at Point Loma. Jason supports Family Ministries, which includes: College, Young Adults, Marriage, Men’s Women’s and Military. He and his wife Britton (who he is crazy about) have four kids (who are crazy about their dad).
Tammy currently serves as the Rock Church’s Assistant to Jason Neese, Associate Campus Pastor at Point Loma. Tammy and Jason support Family Ministries, which includes: College, Young Adults, Marriage, Men’s Women’s and Military. She is madly in love and married to Jeff who also serves at the Rock in the IT Department.
