The 2024 Iowa caucuses kick off yet another presidential election cycle. Six states have caucuses, in which voters gather to discuss and then vote for candidates. The rest of the states have primaries, which are elections with ballots, run by state governments. There are variations, as each state has its own election rules and laws, but both caucuses and primaries have a direct influence on the delegates sent to the political party conventions.
A pig for President
Iowa’s caucuses date back to the 1800s. They didn’t gain national attention, however, until the nomination of a pig named Pigasus the Immortal just before the opening of the 1968 Democratic National Convention, in Chicago.
Yes, that’s right, the Youth International Party, led by Abbie Hoffman, nominated Pigasus (a play on Greek mythology’s winged horse Pegasus) as its presidential candidate. These Yippies (as the group came to be called informally, from the acronym YIP) were notorious for political demonstrations heavy on such theatrics.
But any humorous point the Yippies were making was sadly marred by the anti–Vietnam War and civil-rights riots that soon broke out in Grant Park — resulting in violent skirmishes, injuries, and the arrests of some 650 protesters. This led to significant changes in political party rules, nomination processes, transparency, and more.
Iowa sets the stage
Since 1976, the Iowa caucus has been held before all other caucuses and primaries. It is a key event to create interest and momentum for candidates of both parties.
Election hype
Many of us are deeply concerned about our nation, and we might experience daily anxiety as we watch the news or read opinion pieces predicting that this election will be the last one for our “democracy” (though what we really are is a republic). If this candidate wins, we’re told, he’ll use the government against us; if that one wins, he will be a dictator.
With the 2024 Iowa caucuses now upon us, the Lord has directed me to a passage familiar to all of us: Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts (Psalm 139:23 NIV). This passage of scripture helps us know what to do in times like these.
God has an antidote to anxiety
Psalm 139:17 reminds us that one antidote to our anxiety is to consider: How precious to me are your thoughts, God! … (NIV). When we start feeling anxiety over the condition of our nation, we can pause and ask God what He thinks.
We can trust God to act
Psalm 139:19 says: If only you, God, would slay the wicked! … (NIV). It’s easy to become frustrated with what looks like a two-tiered justice system in our country, the constant demonization of biblical values, and the endless graspings for power. There is not one person, one group, or one committee that can fight and win the battle for righteousness. We must get to the same point where David was — and rely on God to frustrate the ways of the wicked.
God leads those who ask Him
Psalm 139:24 records David’s conclusion: … lead me in the way everlasting (NIV). David’s request is that God show him the path to what’s eternally true. These days of moral relativity — in which people define their own “reality” and then expect everyone else to play along — require us to ask God for guidance and direction. David did not ask for patience to sit back and endure: David asked to be led on the path of everlasting truths. History has never been impacted by someone sitting on the couch doing nothing.
Whatever point anyone may have thought they were making by ridiculously nominating a pig for president, it’s infinitesimal in impact when compared to the divine strategy given by the omnipotent Eternal One: the God of miracles as we meet Him in the Bible.
Prayer for the Iowa caucuses will make a difference
The impact of anyone willing to protest, and even to be imprisoned, for the sake of political change is a mere fraction of what men and women of Christlike faith could do if we were to ask God to move, and then followed His leading.
The Iowa caucuses remind us that we’re entering the election cycle. But they also remind us how important it is for each of us to be engaged in the process, to ensure that His “everlasting ways” are at the very center of our government’s actions.
Have you checked out the IFA Community? Daily prayers, leaders of the day, discussion.
Dave Kubal has been president and CEO of IFA since 2008, and he is the author of four books: Inspired Stories; Inspired Prayers; Inspired People; and Fasting. As a nationally recognized faith leader, Dave serves on the National Faith Advisory Board and the National Day of Prayer Task Force. From the start of his leadership, Dave has emphasized the value of the intercessor as a person, as well as the need to connect each intercessor to the unfolding news, which is in fact history in the making. IFA has grown exponentially under his leadership.
Photo credit: Yippie (Youth International Party) presidential candidate Pigasus is held aloft during a march, New York, New York, September 28, 1968, David Fenton/Getty Images