Donald Trump’s election was arguably the most unexpected political victory in U.S. history. Most Christians were gearing up for four long years of battles over religious freedom with a hostile Hillary Clinton administration. Instead, they woke up on November 9 with that administration stopped before it could even start.

A Clinton presidency would have reinforced the current trend of religious freedoms being curtailed in the name sexual freedom. Trump’s victory marks a break in that momentum. Culturally conservative Christians can see reason to hope that the recent decline in religious freedom will turn around, and our freedoms will begin to be restored.

Thus, now is a good time for reflection. As I said last week, I will refrain from criticizing Trump until he takes office as president. But Christians should prepare for a Trump presidency that may not be all they hope for. We may have been given a temporary reprieve, but we should be wise in how we use it or we could find ourselves worse off than before.

It is vital to keep the pressure on Trump to keep his promises.

First, we must hold President-elect Trump’s feet to the fire on issues of religious freedom. Many Christians who voted for him did so with the expectation that his judicial and regulatory actions would serve to promote religious freedom for all. He owes it to his supporters to do what he said he would do. As bad as Clinton could have been for religious freedom, it will be worse if Trump reneges on his promises. Had Clinton won there still would have been a Republican party to fight for religious freedom. But if Trump goes back on his word, neither political party will be in position to champion religious freedom. So it is vital to keep the pressure on Trump to keep his promises.

This means, too that we should oppose initiatives to ban Muslim immigration or to discriminate against Muslims based on their religion. We must stand for religious freedom for all. We can take reasonable measures to screen out terrorists. That is not bigotry. But treating people as second class because of their religion is. If we do not stand with others for their religious freedom now, the day may come when no one will stand with us.

My bigger fear, however, is that conservative Christians, having tasted power, will forget that access to political power is fleeting, so we should be magnanimous while we hold it. We should not retaliate. While it is true that some Christians have been forced out of their jobs for their positions on marriage and morality, and others have been required by law to participate in ceremonies against their conscience (or fined for resisting), we should not respond in kind. To treat our political opponents charitably is not just morally right, it’s prudent, too. Someday, after all, they are likely to regain Congress and the presidency. We would want them to treat us well then, so we should treat them well now.

Some of Candidate Trump’s statements denigrated people of color. We can hope that President Trump will be wiser. It may be best now to let bygones be bygones with respect to those statements; but if Trump should ever revert to those kinds of messages, Christians must stand firm against them and in support of equal dignity and equal rights.

There were (unfortunately) unsavory elements among those who supported Trump’s candidacy, and white Christians should make sure that they will have limited influence in his administration. Meanwhile white believers should take advantage of this reprieve in the battle for religious freedom, and invest their efforts in listening and working with Christians of color, so as to build cross-racial connections and coalitions. It’s crucial for white Christians now to listen well to minority brothers and sisters, and to seek common ground.

Make no mistake: many of them feel that their concerns were ignored in this campaign, for the sake of white evangelicals’ power. The project of racial reconciliation has suffered damage. White Christians must be particularly sensitive to racial issues that may arise from within a Trump administration, and be prepared to defend people of color.

We must not fall for believing that Trump’s election is the second coming of Christian America.

Finally, some Christians, flush with renewed access to political power, may forget that it is not as enduring as cultural power. Consider what might happen if Christians allow themselves to be linked to negative cultural traits in a Trump administration. That linkage will remain the minds of many long after Trump leaves office. Besides harming our witness, it will also close doors to future political power.

So we must not fall for believing that Trump’s election is the second coming of Christian America. Whatever political power we enjoy now, we must exercise with humility. It will serve us well in exhibiting Christian charity, providing a powerful witness, making Christianophobia less acceptable, and helping to create the positive perceptions necessary for shaping the larger culture.

If we do not step forward to influence culture positively, we may find this reprieve to be shorter than we expected. We should double down on our efforts to effect mainstream cultural institutions such as academia, the arts and the media. Relying on political power to protect religious freedom has not served us well in the past. It will not serve us well now.