Jason Yates, CEO of My Faith Votes, discusses why our faith should matter to our politics, principles for voting based on biblical truth, and how to wrestle with imperfect political parties.

 

Show notes:

 

Jason Yates, CEO of My Faith Votes begins by explaining their mission and why they exist: To encourage Christians to pray, think, and vote (1:45). They discuss why Christians should vote and overcome apathy to begin with (10:31). Yates provides four principles to remember while we vote:

 

• God is in control
• Life is valuable
• Freedom is from God
• The government can’t be everything to everyone

 

He continues by discussing the different levels of government and personal responsibility (19:10). Yates talks about how we often misuse the idea of “separation of church and state” (27:11). They move to talk about how to prioritize the issues when voting and how to struggle well with difficult political questions (31:50). Yates talks about the importance of how to disagree without giving up biblical principles (43:28). They close by affirming the importance pastors talking about the issues to their congregations, without endorsing any party (52:22).

 

Resources and further reading:

 

• My Faith Votes
• “What does the Bible say about politics?” - Jim Denison, Ph.D.
• The Coming Tsunami - Jim Denison Ph.D.
• How Should Christians Vote? - Tony Evans

 

About the host

 

Mark Legg is the Associate Editor for Denison Forum. He graduated from Dallas Baptist University in 2021 with a degree in Philosophy and Biblical Studies.

 

About the guest

 

Jason Yates has over 25 years of proven leadership experience in strategy development, marketing, and product development from Fortune 100 companies. In 2015, his passion to see Christians act on their faith to make a difference in their communities and our nation led him to leave corporate America and assume the role of CEO of My Faith Votes at its inception. With Jason’s leadership, My Faith Votes made a measurable impact on Christian voter turnout in 2016 and is continuing to do so by motivating and equipping every Christian to Think, Pray, and Vote. Jason has served in leadership roles on several non-profit boards, including his role as Chairman of the Board for Club Christ Ministries and Board Director of Governance and Strategic Planning at Junior Achievement. Jason has a BA from Carleton College and an MBA in Strategic Management and E-Business from the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota.