We’ve all experienced it, haven’t we? A product that is “too good to be true,” but we buy it anyway and realize it wasn’t that good. Things like miracle weight-loss pills that don’t actually cause your belly fat to melt away overnight, or hair-growth products that don’t actually fill out your hair, or toothpaste that doesn’t actually whiten your teeth in just days. Shouldn’t there be some sort of truth in advertising so people don’t get duped by marketing gimmicks?

By the same token, I think there should be truth in advertising for politicians. How many times have we seen someone voted into public office, only to find out they’re not who they say they are?

Voters in the Commonwealth of Virginia are experiencing this reality. The state that brought us a number of the Founding Fathers, including the first and greatest president, George Washington, has now elected a total disaster for a governor: Abigail Spanberger, who ran as a “moderate.” Does anyone recall how the Democrats sold Joe Biden as a moderate? How’d that work out?

The same election cycle saw voters elect the first socialist as mayor of America’s greatest city. And why not? Zohran Mamdani promised the moon — “free” buses, “free” daycare, “free” grocery stores, and on and on the list goes. After his inauguration, however, Mamdani discovered that somebody has to cough up the money for his giveaways. Who knew? Apparently, Mamdani is too young to remember British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s comment about socialism: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people’s money.” Have we so badly educated our children that they believe there’s an unlimited amount of money to pay for everything?

Furthermore, Mamdani was for defunding the police before but feigned love for them while campaigning. He had also refused to condemn the radical pro-Palestinian protesters on college campuses who want to destroy Israel, yet as a candidate, he assured Jewish voters that he loved them. “Trust me,” he was saying.

We all know the definition of insanity: Doing the same thing over and over again and each time expecting a different result. We seem to practice insanity every election cycle by putting the same idiots in public office while wondering why nothing changes. Congress is great at deflecting difficult decisions that might make voters mad and letting the president make those decisions, then criticizing him if they fail. The real problem, however, is not the politicians; it’s us, the voters. We did this to ourselves.

We’ve brought about our own problems because we lack wisdom and discernment. Politicians throw out Bible verses, and we simply assume they know what they’re talking about instead of checking it out for ourselves. As the Apostle John wrote, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1).

We are at a critical juncture in our nation. Will we continue to choose leaders who fail the basic tests of character and integrity, or will we pray and seek leaders whom God is raising up? Our nation’s survival depends upon our choice.

Pray like your life depends on it!

Semper Fidelis.