I find it sad and funny that everyone has come to recognize a political promise from a politician as mostly worthless. Far too often have our politicians broken the promises they have made to their constituents. Far too often have the breaking of these promises been solely for their personal gain and not for the sake of compromise. I am open to the need for compromise in the realm of politics. I fully recognize that all people are entitled to their own opinions and views when it comes to politics and that the very nature of getting people together to work out differences necessitates compromise if any agreements are to be reached. When it comes to ones principles it is much harder to compromise. Indeed, I believe that there are principles that cannot be compromised. Unfortunately both side of the political spectrum in our country will feel the same way, that they cannot compromise on their core principles.
Given this understanding of the need for compromise and the existence of principles that both sides feel cannot be compromised we often rationalize the breaking of political promises on the basis of compromise. It has even come to the point where we accept compromise on the principles we feel cannot be compromised to accept the small victory of gaining some political ground to hopefully move closer to our goals. The hope is that we can slowly shift the views of those who oppose our core principles until the come closer to the point where they will accept our core principles. This happens on both sides of the political spectrum.
Unfortunately the sad truth is that most political promises are not broken because of compromise but because of a politicians burning desire to be re-elected. They care more about what it politically safe and than what is right. It is truly sickening to see that those who are elected to serve the people and given the sacred trust to represent us care much more about serving themselves and securing power, fame and money. I shouldn't say that I am surprised because I feel that almost anyone who seeks political office is in someway tainted by those desires. That isn't how it should be but I feel that for the most part that is how it is today.
How should this change? Any politician should re-assess his or her role and his or her title. They should realize that they are elected as public servants. They are elected to SERVE. Serve the public and not themselves. Imagine if our politicians actually started to shift toward the role of public servants instead of self servants. This, I think, would mean that they would be willing to do things that are absolutely necessary but seen as political suicide. I pray that our politicians will become true public servants.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Sunday, February 13, 2011
History Unfolds
What does it mean to have history unfolding? With what has been going on recently in Egypt it is hard to say that the events are not significant. But what is it that makes something history? I would say that to qualify something as history it would have to be written down. And so, since so much has been written down and recorded about the events in Egypt it is indeed history unfolding before our eyes and being written by our hands. So what does this mean for us? What is our perspective on what is happening in Egypt? This is where I make a plug (and confession) for personal journals. If we record our perspective on what is going on around us in the world and add our interpretation of it our family that comes after us will have a unique record with which the can understand what was going on in the world around us during our time and see how it affected our everyday lives. Now for my confession. I haven't been keeping a regular journal very good at all. For one thing it is so much easier for me to type then it is for me to write but what do I do with a bunch of files if I do type out my journal (whichI have tried to do in the past). Do I print them out and then try and bind them into something that might be a little more permanent than a three ring binder? It is more practical in the long run to hand write my journal but then out comes the lazy bug in me saying it is too hard to take the time to write something down. Well, it's kick in the pants time. Time for me to get a little (very little) more serious about writing in my journal.
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Are We Law Abiding
When you look at our society (America) and try to pinpoint what it is about us that makes us stand out from the rest of the world you come up with several differences. First, we are the longest surviving self governing nation in the world. That has not come about by chance. To be a self governing nation there is a built in need that the citizens of this nation uphold and respect the laws. The righteous purpose of government is to setup a system of laws that will serve to protect the nation and its people from those who would do harm. This system of laws will serve no purpose if the citizens of the nation do not agree to submit themselves to those laws. It is much easier to submit oneself to a system of laws in which the people have a means of setting the laws themselves, or through representatives that they themselves appoint, and to change the laws should the need arrise. This system which we as Americans have so long enjoyed can only be upheld if we respect the laws of the land. This crucial characteristic of the citizenry of this nation is eroding over time.
As our society loses the moral foundation upon which it has thrived for so long then one of the symptoms of this moral rot is a disrespect of the law and an unwillingness to uphold it. One of the most simple manifestations of a willingness to uphold the law is in the laws that seem to have little consequence to us personally or the laws that are easy for us to circumvent without a high probability of being caught. Speeding is a good example. On almost all roads in our country the speed limit is clearly posted yet there are constantly those who ignore said speed limit and break the law. There are a million different excuses and very few people who uphold this law religiously (myself not being one of them). This is just a simple example that represents a willingness to break the law instead of uphold it.
Another clear example today is the millions of people who immigrate to this country illegally. This, of course, is a touchy subject. I feel sorry for those who find themselves in a desperate enough situation that they feel the need to break a law to support their family. I know that this country is a land of opportunity and a blessed land and I do wish that all could participate in the blessings this land has to offer but having studied my history I also know that no nation can simply open its borders completely and let all who would enter. There needs to be order in the immigration system. Laws need to be respected and the process for becoming a citizen simplified to allow the better life that all Americans enjoy to be more accessible to as many as possible.
As a country, we are not immune to the influx of millions of people who have had to circumvent the law to get here. The effects of this circumvention are that they must continue to break laws that help keep the order in our society so that they can remain here. This lawlessness spreads as the children of those who come here illegally are not taught to respect and uphold the law.
This brings us to the question, are we law abiding? Do we set an example in our lives of upholding and respecting the law? What if more and more of us rebuilt the moral foundation in our lives, families, and communities by being the people of integrity that our fore bearers were? Would we be able to reverse the moral decay and the spread of disrespect for the law? What else can we do but try? This means that we will have to commit to upholding the law even when it might be inconvenient or even when we might easily get away with it should we not uphold the law. Like speeding, what if we all went the speed limit more often?
As our society loses the moral foundation upon which it has thrived for so long then one of the symptoms of this moral rot is a disrespect of the law and an unwillingness to uphold it. One of the most simple manifestations of a willingness to uphold the law is in the laws that seem to have little consequence to us personally or the laws that are easy for us to circumvent without a high probability of being caught. Speeding is a good example. On almost all roads in our country the speed limit is clearly posted yet there are constantly those who ignore said speed limit and break the law. There are a million different excuses and very few people who uphold this law religiously (myself not being one of them). This is just a simple example that represents a willingness to break the law instead of uphold it.
Another clear example today is the millions of people who immigrate to this country illegally. This, of course, is a touchy subject. I feel sorry for those who find themselves in a desperate enough situation that they feel the need to break a law to support their family. I know that this country is a land of opportunity and a blessed land and I do wish that all could participate in the blessings this land has to offer but having studied my history I also know that no nation can simply open its borders completely and let all who would enter. There needs to be order in the immigration system. Laws need to be respected and the process for becoming a citizen simplified to allow the better life that all Americans enjoy to be more accessible to as many as possible.
As a country, we are not immune to the influx of millions of people who have had to circumvent the law to get here. The effects of this circumvention are that they must continue to break laws that help keep the order in our society so that they can remain here. This lawlessness spreads as the children of those who come here illegally are not taught to respect and uphold the law.
This brings us to the question, are we law abiding? Do we set an example in our lives of upholding and respecting the law? What if more and more of us rebuilt the moral foundation in our lives, families, and communities by being the people of integrity that our fore bearers were? Would we be able to reverse the moral decay and the spread of disrespect for the law? What else can we do but try? This means that we will have to commit to upholding the law even when it might be inconvenient or even when we might easily get away with it should we not uphold the law. Like speeding, what if we all went the speed limit more often?
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Election Blues
After the disappointing primary results back in August I found myself a little disillusioned with politics for a while. I did more research into the candidates and issues than I ever had before and went into the primary very prepared. The disappointment came when almost every single person I voted for lost and the incumbents in almost all the races won. Of course I realize that everyone has a unique opinion when it comes to politics and just because I thought that a certain person would have been the right person for the job, someone else most definitely thought a different person was the right one for the job. One of the most disappointing things for me during both the primary and the general election this last week was the fact that many people believed the lies of so many politicians and unfortunately many people didn't turn out to vote.
I know that a lot of people look at the results and see that the republicans won a lot of races so that is great, or they may be glad that the democrats won what they did but for me it isn't about parties. It can't just be that we go blindly to the polls and vote for the R or the D. I am particularly disappointed that McCain is representing Arizona again and that Jan Brewer is our governor again. These are both republicans and have both had some pretty good press lately but the fact is that I deeply disagree with their stances on many of the issues and the complete lack of honesty and integrity that both have displayed on different occasions over the years. I feel that partisanship is betraying true representation of constituents. When a politician is elected to office under the name of whatever political party they are expected to vote the way the party does on the issues. Their first responsibility should be to vote the way they know their constituents would want and to hold to their principles and those of their constituents even if it means voting against their party. Unfortunately there are few who are willing to do this.
Campaigning is a dirty business and it is very common for politicians to lie straight faced. It is even more common for politicians to attack their opponents character and I completely understand how one can get so sick of hearing this garbage instead of really talking about the issues.
It is only too clear that this dirty campaigning, partisan fighting and mudslinging are destroying our government and that the only thing to do to allow us to reclaim our government is to do our parts as voters. Read and study the issues, look at both sides of an argument, come up with our own conclusions, ignore campaign ads, seek the truth, pray, and then vote our conscience. Arizona had a 25% turn out for the primary elections in August. That is terrible. Too many people don't care. Too many people think that their vote doesn't matter. We have got to do our civic duty and be informed and involved voters.
I know that a lot of people look at the results and see that the republicans won a lot of races so that is great, or they may be glad that the democrats won what they did but for me it isn't about parties. It can't just be that we go blindly to the polls and vote for the R or the D. I am particularly disappointed that McCain is representing Arizona again and that Jan Brewer is our governor again. These are both republicans and have both had some pretty good press lately but the fact is that I deeply disagree with their stances on many of the issues and the complete lack of honesty and integrity that both have displayed on different occasions over the years. I feel that partisanship is betraying true representation of constituents. When a politician is elected to office under the name of whatever political party they are expected to vote the way the party does on the issues. Their first responsibility should be to vote the way they know their constituents would want and to hold to their principles and those of their constituents even if it means voting against their party. Unfortunately there are few who are willing to do this.
Campaigning is a dirty business and it is very common for politicians to lie straight faced. It is even more common for politicians to attack their opponents character and I completely understand how one can get so sick of hearing this garbage instead of really talking about the issues.
It is only too clear that this dirty campaigning, partisan fighting and mudslinging are destroying our government and that the only thing to do to allow us to reclaim our government is to do our parts as voters. Read and study the issues, look at both sides of an argument, come up with our own conclusions, ignore campaign ads, seek the truth, pray, and then vote our conscience. Arizona had a 25% turn out for the primary elections in August. That is terrible. Too many people don't care. Too many people think that their vote doesn't matter. We have got to do our civic duty and be informed and involved voters.
Friday, August 13, 2010
Our Power Seeking Politicians
I came across another really interesting article at the American Thinker website again. This article is about the Enumerated Powers act which, to briefly summarize the act, states that every bill must clearly cite where in the constitution it finds the authority to enact that bill. Doesn't this sound like a great idea?
I have always wondered why we need so many congressmen and senators making law after law all year long. That gives us probably thousands of laws. How are we supposed to enforce all those laws? How are we supposed to even keep track? And now that some of the recent bills have been so huge that no one has even read them, how can we even be certain that those who swear to uphold and defend the constitution are staying within the bounds the constitution has set for them?
It only makes sense to enact a bill that will force congress to prove that each and every bill is, without a doubt, constitutional. In fact, it would be a great idea to make this act retroactive and go back and remove any law that is not constitutional.
I also think it is appalling that this act has come up in every congressional session for so long and has been shot down every time. How can we believe that our lawmakers are staying true to the oath they take to uphold and defend the constitution if they are not willing to simply show where they get the authority for each bill and amendment that they pass? I say, anyone who is not willing to religiously live by the constitution should be taken out of office as swiftly as possible. It is up to us to find out who they are and vote the bums out.
I have always wondered why we need so many congressmen and senators making law after law all year long. That gives us probably thousands of laws. How are we supposed to enforce all those laws? How are we supposed to even keep track? And now that some of the recent bills have been so huge that no one has even read them, how can we even be certain that those who swear to uphold and defend the constitution are staying within the bounds the constitution has set for them?
It only makes sense to enact a bill that will force congress to prove that each and every bill is, without a doubt, constitutional. In fact, it would be a great idea to make this act retroactive and go back and remove any law that is not constitutional.
I also think it is appalling that this act has come up in every congressional session for so long and has been shot down every time. How can we believe that our lawmakers are staying true to the oath they take to uphold and defend the constitution if they are not willing to simply show where they get the authority for each bill and amendment that they pass? I say, anyone who is not willing to religiously live by the constitution should be taken out of office as swiftly as possible. It is up to us to find out who they are and vote the bums out.
The True State of the Economy
What really is going on in our economy? It is hard to get a clear picture since we here one thing from the White House, that the worst is over and that we are on our way to recovery (even though none of us buy that). The media who appear to be partial to the President also report that things are looking up and even in some instances excuse the President by re-iterating the point that this is going to take a while to fix since the last administration made such a mess (again, none of us buy that excuse).
To get a clear picture I think we need to look around the word and back through history and compare our situation to other countries who have gone through similar problems. This brings me to an article that I read on the American Thinker website. The article compares the collapse of Argentina to what is happening now in our country and it is really interesting to me since I was in Argentina at the time of the collapse. Read the article here. It is chilling to get a little more perspective on what is going on and see how perilous it could be for our country. It looks like it is time for all of us to get involved and demand integrity and real change that is actually good for the country from our politicians.
To get a clear picture I think we need to look around the word and back through history and compare our situation to other countries who have gone through similar problems. This brings me to an article that I read on the American Thinker website. The article compares the collapse of Argentina to what is happening now in our country and it is really interesting to me since I was in Argentina at the time of the collapse. Read the article here. It is chilling to get a little more perspective on what is going on and see how perilous it could be for our country. It looks like it is time for all of us to get involved and demand integrity and real change that is actually good for the country from our politicians.
Friday, August 6, 2010
A Humbling Conversation With an Argentine Friend
The following is a conversation I had with a friend of mine from Argentina on Facebook. I will post the original comments (in Spanish) and the translation, in case my translation is sloppy.
Me:
"Quieres que lo diga en espanol? Tengo un blog que he empesado hace poco para compartir mi opinion sobre lo que esta pasando en los Estados Unidos ahora porque siento que lo que esta pasando es que estamos perdiendo la libertad que hemos disfrutado y no me puedo quedar en silencio. Tengo que hacer cualquier cosa que pueda para avanzar la causa de libertad y la primera cosa que puedo hacer as tener un blog."
Do you want me to say it in Spanish? I have a blog that I started a while ago to share my opinion about what is going on in the United States right now because I feel that what is happening is we are loosing the freedoms that we have enjoyed and I cannot remain silent. I have to do whatever I can to further the cause of freedom and the first thing that I can do is to start a blog.
Maria (from Argentina):
"Estuve leyendo con el traductor de Windows, no es muy bueno, entonces no podía estar segura de que las opiniones de tu blog fueran tuyas...
Me parece muy bueno que lo hagas, los ciudadanos tenemos que participar, pensé que en los Estados estaba todo bien...
Acá, Joe, está todo mal...es tan triste, creo que siempre seremos pobres, con mi esposo trabajamos y no logramos salir adelante, nuestra casa está más rota que cuando vos estuviste acá, no logramos ganar más que el dinero justo como para la comida y algún gasto fijo, pero NADA MÁS, no logramos crecer económicamente. Ultimamente nos sentimos muy desanimados porque ya no sabemos qué hacer para salir adelante... De todas maneras, CREÉME, que Ustedes están mejor!!! Nosotros no podemos comprar ropa para nuestros hijos, tampoco para nosotros; nosotros tenemos que calentarnos con la misma salamandra q vos conociste, con leña y en los cuartos de los niños hace frío, tenemos frío para bañarnos; nustra heladera está rota, nuestro auto viejo está roto en el taller hace más de un mes y no podemos arreglarlo, Jesús va al trabajo en bici con todas sus herramientas (sólo tenemos una bici para toda la familia)....etc, etc, etc.....
No quiero que llores por nosotros!!!jajajaja....Qui
Contale a Suzanne cómo vivimos aquí en Argentina y DISFRUTEN, DISFRUTEN, DISFRUTEN y, claro, sigan luchando por un país mejor."
I was reading with the translator on Windows, it isn't very good, so I can't be sure that the opinions from your blog were yours...
It seems to me very good what you are doing, we, the citizens, have to participate, I thought that all was well in the Sates... Here, Joe, it's all bad... it is very sad, I believe will always be poor, with my husband we work but we cannot get ahead, our house is more broken than when you were here, we cannot make more than just enough money to cover the food and some fixed expenses, but NOTHING ELSE, we cannot grow economically. Lately we are feeling discourages because we do not know what to do to get ahead.... In every way, BELIEVE ME, you are better off!!! We cannot buy clothes for our kids, or for ourselves; we have to heat ourselves with the same little heater that you saw when you were here, with firewood and in the kids rooms it is still cold, we have cold water to bath ourselves with; Our fridge is broken, our old car is broken and has been in the shop for more than a month and we cannot fix it. Jesus rides his bike to work with all his tools (we only have one bike for the whole family)... etc, etc, etc... I don't want yout to cry for us!!! hahaha... I want you to enjoy what you have, because even in the USA things are happening that you don't like, you still live in a country where it is NORMAL to have a heater, where it is NORMAL to go on vacations, where it is NORMAL to was dishes and clothes with a machine... ENJOY, ENJOY, ENJOY FRIEND. You know I am always joking around, but NOT this time. I have thought about it a lot and that you must have done something food en the pre-existence to have been born in a PRIVILEGED COUNTRY.
Tell Suzanne how we live here an Argentina and ENJOY, ENJOY, ENJOY, and of course, kepp fighting for a better country.
Me:
"Maria, gracias por contarme su situacion y ayudarme a recordar cuan grande es la bendicion vivir en este pais. Se sin duda que tengo una vida muy bendecida y espero que cada persona tuviera la misma vida que yo disfruto. Agradezco mi Padre Celestial cada dia por la bendicion que yo tengo de sostener a mi familia y la bendicion de tener un trabajo. No creo que merezco una vida tan bendecida porque siento que no he hecho ninguna cosa para merecer la bendicion de vivir en este pais y tener la seguridad que tengo. La razon por la que empece mi blog no fue para quijarme de la situacion economica de este pais ni mi sitacion economica pero empece mi blog porque yo creo que estamos perdiendo nuestra libertad. Los que gobiernan este pais estan dandose mas poder sobre nosotros los ciudadanos. Poder para quitarnos la libertad de escoger lo que hacemos con lo que ganamos. Poder para quitarnos la libertad aun de saber la verdad de lo que esta pasando en este pais. Aun estan luchando para quitarnos la libertda de prensa y la libertad de hablar criticamente del gobierno. Estan intentando cambiar la sistema de nuestra gobierno a comunismo. Si perdimos la libertad en los Estados Unidos no se que pasara a la iglesia ni a la causa de libertad en el mundo. Se por cierto que las fuerzas de satanas estan luchando para quitarnos la libertad porque si sucedan no habra nada que les impide seguir destruyendo la familia y la iglesia. Le digo esto porque quiero aclarar que no me estoy quejando de la situacion economica en que me encuentro porque se que es la libertad que disfruto en este pais que hace posible la verdad de que, si me esfuerzo y trabjo todo lo que puedo, es possible salir adelante en la vida y ser exitoso. Pero aun mas importante, es la libertad que disfrutamos en este pais que nos da el poder para establecer el reino de dios y compartir el evangelio y tomar el mensaje de la libertad de nustras almas al mundo. Creo que la guerra que mepezo en los cielos entre el bien y el mal sigue hoy con el mismo furor y yo quiero luchar por el bien y por la libertad en cada campo de batalla que puedo tanto espiritualmente como temporalmente."
Maria, thank you for telling me about your situation and helping me remember how great a blessing it is to live in this country. I know without a doubt that I have a very blessed life and I wish that every person could have the same life that I enjoy. I thank my Father in Heaven every day for the blessing I have of providing for my family and the blessing of having a job. I do not believe that I deserve such a blessed life because I feel like I have done nothing to deserve the blessing of living in this country and having the security that I do. The reason that I started my blog is because I believe we are loosing our freedom. Those that govern this country are giving themselves more power over us, the citizens. Power to take away our freedom to choose what we do with what we earn, power to take away the freedom even to know the truth about what is going on in this country. They are even fighting to take away the freedom of the press and to criticize the government. They are trying to change the system of government in this country to communism. If we loose freedom in the United States I do not know what will happen to the church or to the cause of freedom around the world. I know for certain that the forces of Satan are fighting to take away our freedom because, if they succeed, there will be nothing standing in there way to continue destroying the family and the church. I tell you this because I want to clarify that I am not complaining about the economic situation in which I find myself because I know that it is the freedom that I enjoy in this country that makes possible the fact that, if I put forth the effort and work as hard as I can, it is possible to get ahead in life and be successful. But, even more importantly, it is the freedom that we enjoy en this country that gives us the power to establish the kingdom of God and share the gospel and take the message of the freedom of our souls to the world. I believe that the war that started in heaven between good and evil continues today with the same fury and I want to fight for good and for freedom and every battlefield that I can both spiritually and temporally.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This conversation that I had with Maria is humbling. It hurts me to know that my friends in Argentina are suffering through the difficult trials that they are. I pray that I may never forget the blessing that it is to live in this country, the richest and most blessed country in the whole world. I also pray that to have the courage to do whatever I can to further the cause of freedom and to lift all of Gods children to the standard of living that I know He feels we deserve. That lifting cannot come through government entitlement programs but through the goodness of our hearts, through charity, which is the pure love of Christ, and charity cannot be mandated, that was Satan's plan.
Me:
"Quieres que lo diga en espanol? Tengo un blog que he empesado hace poco para compartir mi opinion sobre lo que esta pasando en los Estados Unidos ahora porque siento que lo que esta pasando es que estamos perdiendo la libertad que hemos disfrutado y no me puedo quedar en silencio. Tengo que hacer cualquier cosa que pueda para avanzar la causa de libertad y la primera cosa que puedo hacer as tener un blog."
Do you want me to say it in Spanish? I have a blog that I started a while ago to share my opinion about what is going on in the United States right now because I feel that what is happening is we are loosing the freedoms that we have enjoyed and I cannot remain silent. I have to do whatever I can to further the cause of freedom and the first thing that I can do is to start a blog.
Maria (from Argentina):
"Estuve leyendo con el traductor de Windows, no es muy bueno, entonces no podía estar segura de que las opiniones de tu blog fueran tuyas...
Me parece muy bueno que lo hagas, los ciudadanos tenemos que participar, pensé que en los Estados estaba todo bien...
Acá, Joe, está todo mal...es tan triste, creo que siempre seremos pobres, con mi esposo trabajamos y no logramos salir adelante, nuestra casa está más rota que cuando vos estuviste acá, no logramos ganar más que el dinero justo como para la comida y algún gasto fijo, pero NADA MÁS, no logramos crecer económicamente. Ultimamente nos sentimos muy desanimados porque ya no sabemos qué hacer para salir adelante... De todas maneras, CREÉME, que Ustedes están mejor!!! Nosotros no podemos comprar ropa para nuestros hijos, tampoco para nosotros; nosotros tenemos que calentarnos con la misma salamandra q vos conociste, con leña y en los cuartos de los niños hace frío, tenemos frío para bañarnos; nustra heladera está rota, nuestro auto viejo está roto en el taller hace más de un mes y no podemos arreglarlo, Jesús va al trabajo en bici con todas sus herramientas (sólo tenemos una bici para toda la familia)....etc, etc, etc.....
No quiero que llores por nosotros!!!jajajaja....Qui
Contale a Suzanne cómo vivimos aquí en Argentina y DISFRUTEN, DISFRUTEN, DISFRUTEN y, claro, sigan luchando por un país mejor."
I was reading with the translator on Windows, it isn't very good, so I can't be sure that the opinions from your blog were yours...
It seems to me very good what you are doing, we, the citizens, have to participate, I thought that all was well in the Sates... Here, Joe, it's all bad... it is very sad, I believe will always be poor, with my husband we work but we cannot get ahead, our house is more broken than when you were here, we cannot make more than just enough money to cover the food and some fixed expenses, but NOTHING ELSE, we cannot grow economically. Lately we are feeling discourages because we do not know what to do to get ahead.... In every way, BELIEVE ME, you are better off!!! We cannot buy clothes for our kids, or for ourselves; we have to heat ourselves with the same little heater that you saw when you were here, with firewood and in the kids rooms it is still cold, we have cold water to bath ourselves with; Our fridge is broken, our old car is broken and has been in the shop for more than a month and we cannot fix it. Jesus rides his bike to work with all his tools (we only have one bike for the whole family)... etc, etc, etc... I don't want yout to cry for us!!! hahaha... I want you to enjoy what you have, because even in the USA things are happening that you don't like, you still live in a country where it is NORMAL to have a heater, where it is NORMAL to go on vacations, where it is NORMAL to was dishes and clothes with a machine... ENJOY, ENJOY, ENJOY FRIEND. You know I am always joking around, but NOT this time. I have thought about it a lot and that you must have done something food en the pre-existence to have been born in a PRIVILEGED COUNTRY.
Tell Suzanne how we live here an Argentina and ENJOY, ENJOY, ENJOY, and of course, kepp fighting for a better country.
Me:
"Maria, gracias por contarme su situacion y ayudarme a recordar cuan grande es la bendicion vivir en este pais. Se sin duda que tengo una vida muy bendecida y espero que cada persona tuviera la misma vida que yo disfruto. Agradezco mi Padre Celestial cada dia por la bendicion que yo tengo de sostener a mi familia y la bendicion de tener un trabajo. No creo que merezco una vida tan bendecida porque siento que no he hecho ninguna cosa para merecer la bendicion de vivir en este pais y tener la seguridad que tengo. La razon por la que empece mi blog no fue para quijarme de la situacion economica de este pais ni mi sitacion economica pero empece mi blog porque yo creo que estamos perdiendo nuestra libertad. Los que gobiernan este pais estan dandose mas poder sobre nosotros los ciudadanos. Poder para quitarnos la libertad de escoger lo que hacemos con lo que ganamos. Poder para quitarnos la libertad aun de saber la verdad de lo que esta pasando en este pais. Aun estan luchando para quitarnos la libertda de prensa y la libertad de hablar criticamente del gobierno. Estan intentando cambiar la sistema de nuestra gobierno a comunismo. Si perdimos la libertad en los Estados Unidos no se que pasara a la iglesia ni a la causa de libertad en el mundo. Se por cierto que las fuerzas de satanas estan luchando para quitarnos la libertad porque si sucedan no habra nada que les impide seguir destruyendo la familia y la iglesia. Le digo esto porque quiero aclarar que no me estoy quejando de la situacion economica en que me encuentro porque se que es la libertad que disfruto en este pais que hace posible la verdad de que, si me esfuerzo y trabjo todo lo que puedo, es possible salir adelante en la vida y ser exitoso. Pero aun mas importante, es la libertad que disfrutamos en este pais que nos da el poder para establecer el reino de dios y compartir el evangelio y tomar el mensaje de la libertad de nustras almas al mundo. Creo que la guerra que mepezo en los cielos entre el bien y el mal sigue hoy con el mismo furor y yo quiero luchar por el bien y por la libertad en cada campo de batalla que puedo tanto espiritualmente como temporalmente."
Maria, thank you for telling me about your situation and helping me remember how great a blessing it is to live in this country. I know without a doubt that I have a very blessed life and I wish that every person could have the same life that I enjoy. I thank my Father in Heaven every day for the blessing I have of providing for my family and the blessing of having a job. I do not believe that I deserve such a blessed life because I feel like I have done nothing to deserve the blessing of living in this country and having the security that I do. The reason that I started my blog is because I believe we are loosing our freedom. Those that govern this country are giving themselves more power over us, the citizens. Power to take away our freedom to choose what we do with what we earn, power to take away the freedom even to know the truth about what is going on in this country. They are even fighting to take away the freedom of the press and to criticize the government. They are trying to change the system of government in this country to communism. If we loose freedom in the United States I do not know what will happen to the church or to the cause of freedom around the world. I know for certain that the forces of Satan are fighting to take away our freedom because, if they succeed, there will be nothing standing in there way to continue destroying the family and the church. I tell you this because I want to clarify that I am not complaining about the economic situation in which I find myself because I know that it is the freedom that I enjoy in this country that makes possible the fact that, if I put forth the effort and work as hard as I can, it is possible to get ahead in life and be successful. But, even more importantly, it is the freedom that we enjoy en this country that gives us the power to establish the kingdom of God and share the gospel and take the message of the freedom of our souls to the world. I believe that the war that started in heaven between good and evil continues today with the same fury and I want to fight for good and for freedom and every battlefield that I can both spiritually and temporally.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This conversation that I had with Maria is humbling. It hurts me to know that my friends in Argentina are suffering through the difficult trials that they are. I pray that I may never forget the blessing that it is to live in this country, the richest and most blessed country in the whole world. I also pray that to have the courage to do whatever I can to further the cause of freedom and to lift all of Gods children to the standard of living that I know He feels we deserve. That lifting cannot come through government entitlement programs but through the goodness of our hearts, through charity, which is the pure love of Christ, and charity cannot be mandated, that was Satan's plan.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)