I found the following words by Jeffery Bilbro really helpful as we stare down a presidential election. I have significant feelings about this election and these words provided instant perspective.
The upshot, then, is that Pascal recommends a profound sort of apathy, a sancta indifferentia, toward the outcome of the issues we read about and advocate for. This indifference is rooted in a confidence that God is in control and in a humility about our own ability to discern the workings of Providence in contemporary events....
Epistemic humility, particularly regarding the workings of Providence, requires us to acknowledge that even when our candidate loses, or when a court case is decided in a way that seems wrong, or when tragedy strikes, God is still working out his will—and he cannot be defeated. The reverse holds true as well: it may be that just when we think we are winning, we are going astray from God’s kingdom. A high view of Providence and a chastened sense of our ability to recognize God’s methods of victory frees us from worrying about whether a given event is good or bad. Even when the events of the news seem irredeemably evil, they remain under the hand of the Creator who is working all things according to his plan....
We should be passionate in working for what we perceive to be the good, but we should not be upset if our cause faces setbacks or receives bad news....The goal of sancta indifferentia is faithful action that’s not concerned with the results.
-Jeffery Bilbro, Reading the Times; A literary and Theological Inquiry into the News
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