Ronald Reagan once stated, "If we ever forget that we are One Nation Under God, then we will be a nation gone under." Every time I turn on the TV or scroll through my Facebook feed, I see that this is proving to be more and more true with the bloodshed and hate that have become a part of our daily news.

While we would like to be naive, shut off the evils of the world and remain comfortable on the walls of our homes, churches and places where we are surrounded by those of the same values and beliefs as us, our nation is in a state of dire need for good people to take a stand. In order to have an influence, Christians need to speak out and actively participate in politics.

Politics — the topic that gets more shade, eye-rolls and dismissive remarks than any other, yet is one that largely impacts every aspect of our lives.

So, why should Christians specifically participate? I'll give you a few (of the multitude) of reasons:

Christianity is one of the most persecuted groups in the entire world.

It is a worldview that is constantly demonized by nonbelievers. Nations all around the globe go to extremes of abuse, imprisonment and murder to stop those of Christian faith from practicing their religious beliefs. However, there are still democratic nations, such as the United States, which allow for free practice of religion. Christians who are fortunate enough to live in these democratic nations should use these religious freedoms to participate as citizens by diving into social and political problems outside of the Church.

We must enact policies and laws that preserve our values.

Not only must we ensure that our freedom to practice our religion is not hindered, but we must protect the values that we believe, which includes, but is not limited to, protection of the unborn and defending the building blocks of our society: marriage and family.

We can change the character of debating.

There is so much hatred and anger on both sides of the political spectrum that you can hardly make a statement without causing a heated argument. As Christians, we still can (and should) engage in discussions and debates, but we are called to do so in a loving manner. Once people of faith are informed, and this enables us to bring our moral standards of God’s Word into the civic realm of our societies. This is an essential role for Christians in order to change the character of debating. The more we engage, the more influence we have in the world.

For evil to prevail, it only takes good people doing nothing.

The political realm has been overtaken by corruption and evil. It is not because we lack genuinely good people in our nation. It is because fear has silenced the good and pushed them out of our most influential seats. This is why Christians need to speak out and actively legislate. Our freedoms are constantly being eroded, and so many now see Christians as the enemy. As Christians, we believe that God has provided us with a moral code that is truth. It has established right and wrong very clearly. Without this moral code, there is no longer anything to base right and wrong off of except for the corrupt opinions of man.

Furthermore, our country was founded on biblical principles that were, no doubt, divinely guided. I believe that there are very few mistakes larger than for Christians to stand back and not be involved in bringing about and supporting biblical truth in the political process. This is why I wholeheartedly believe in taking an active stance as Christians in our free democratic nation.