WE THE PEOPLE...

"WE THE PEOPLE"... The beginning of our Constitution, our road map to our freedom. It further  says, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, and that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." We the people, we are becoming a dependent people, an apathetic people, a lazy people, and soon no longer a free people.

We the people are becoming apathetic, allowing our elected officials to run unchecked. For if indeed we cared we would not re-elect these same people again and again. In business if someone does not perform the way they are trained or instructed they're fired. In politics they're re-elected. And these officials are expanding our government at an alarming rate. We are almost at a point where half our population are in some way government employees. That means anyone in the private sector is no longer responsible for their own welfare- now they're responsible for themselves and one more... James Madison wrote in the Federalist Papers, "In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself." Our officials have failed in at least the second part of this mandate, for it does not control itself. Thomas Jefferson said "the chains of the Constitution" should bind the mischief of government. Senator Ted Cruz said, in a recent speech, that "only when government is limited are rights protected, the rule of law honored and freedom allowed to flourish." Our government, and especially specific to our current administration, our Constitution is constantly circumvented, our rights consistently infringed upon.

We the people are becoming dependent and lazy. The more we allow ourselves to rely on the government the more freedom and happiness we surrender. To maintain its power and control it is imperative that the government grow. To limit government in any way is to allow or return freedom to its citizens. So the government gives to its citizens, or hands out, to curry favor. And citizens accept, and they become a bit lazier as a result, for they have to do less. What they don't realize is their growing dependence on government robs them of their freedom, and ultimately their happiness. For it is in our ability to produce, to achieve, that we realize self-worth, gain self esteem, and find happiness in our satisfaction of achievement. Hand outs never grow self worth or self esteem- never. Ronald Reagan said, "How can we love our country without loving our countrymen, and loving them, reach out a hand when they fall, heal them when they're sick, and provide opportunity to make them self-sufficient so they will be equal in fact and not just in theory?" He understood it's not the handout, but the opportunity that betters mankind. It's freedom, not dependence that betters us!
We the people are no longer a free people, or at least in grave danger of losing our freedom. When we trade freedom for security we soon become puppets of our government. I recently had a conversation with a local businessman, whose company has 50 plus employees, and he was lamenting how many new regulations and taxes Obamacare is impacting on his company. He had spent a day at seminar on all the new regs and was overwhelmed. He said it looked like he was going to have to hire a person just to implement Obamacare, and many questions raised by the business community at this seminar hadn't even been decided yet by the government. Our society, thinking this was such a great thing, allowed Obamacare to be shoved down our throats, and now have no idea how much freedom they gave up to the government, or how dramatically negatively impacted they will be until it's too late. The Congressional Budget Office (non-partisan) estimated that in 2014 health insurance premiums will rise across the country 125-400%- and we the people will be obligated to pay. I won't go into the negative domino effect that will happen to private business here with the implementation of this massive new government program. But it can never be good when the government attempts to control what amount to one-sixth of our private sector GNP. Allowing that control is forfeiting that much freedom. Allowing that control swells the size of our government enormously. We the people, prepare to lose what freedoms you have left, for all too often the acquisition of power leads to a hunger for more, and our government can't get more without depriving we the people of our rights.

In closing, a few random thoughts. This administration claims we need to cut back, i.e.. the sequester cuts we recently experienced, and everyone will have to share the debt burden. The cuts represent 5% cuts in budgets- how many private sector folks have cut back two, three, five, ten times that? I say we've already shouldered our burden. Obama is taking an African vacation estimated to cost tax-payers 60 to 100 million dollars- yet he canceled public tours through the White House as a "cut-back" measure. How many tours can we take with $100million dollars? One hundred and six plus years worth... That's right- for those of you who voted him in, how much does he really have our country's welfare at heart? His wife and kids went to Ireland with him while he attends the G-8 summit, but it wasn't enough to be with him- Michele took the girls to another city, and we the people footed the additional $5 million bill... These people don't care about me or you, or those precious to you. They say one thing but do another, and they're bleeding every penny out of us that they can in the process... WAKE UP AMERICA! before it's too late!

Food for thought...

Father's Day... Memories...

This past Sunday was Father's Day, and as I took the opportunity Monday to mow the grass I reflected on it, and on some past Father's Day memories...

I have three children, all grown, married, and on their own. I'm a grandfather twice over now. I love my children and love nothing more than seeing them, or hearing from them. But I also recognize that they are busy living lives, raising families of their own, going through all those struggles life puts in our way. So I try to be patient, and tolerant, and accept the time that they are able to share with me. I will occasionally call, or text, to remind them I love them and miss them, but I really try not to impose on them or guilt them into visiting.
I was divorced in the early 1990's, when a father's rights were not recognized like they are today. Despite being told I had literally no chance to get custody of my kids without dragging my ex through the mud, I chose to take the high road and fight for joint legal and physical custody based on the fact that I was a good dad and deserved my kids. I was lied about, smeared, and constantly attacked in court, and after many, many months (several years) I was granted my request... God honors the high road... Still, there were many times I thought how much easier it would have been on me to just pay the money and move on, like my ex was fighting for... Yet in the end it was my love for my kids, and my desire to want to instill in them those things I felt important to achieve success in life that kept me fighting.
I was an authoritative father, (not an authoritarian, for there's a huge difference between the two). There were times I could have done a much better job in my fathering, but being stubborn and hard-headed at times, sometimes too sure of my rightness, in retrospect I could have done better in some of my decisions... Still, I can honestly say that those decisions I did make were grounded in the fact that I loved my children and wanted the best for and from them. Hindsight is always 20-20, and age tends to mellow, still I tend to be one of my harshest critics, so I recognize areas I could have done better... I'm sure I caused resentment in my kids, in differing degrees, but especially in my boys...
I remember Father's Days past when I didn't get even a call or text wishing me a happy day from one or more of my kids. I remember, during times of conflict, wondering if it was all worth it, if my kids would ever appreciate the sacrifices I went through for them, for what I thought was in their best interest... I said earlier that God honors the high road, and sometimes it just takes patience- as both my boys became fathers both have shared at one time or another about the difficulty of fatherhood, and an appreciation for me despite our differences... This year was special. My younger son dropped in on Saturday with his family to wish me a Happy Father's Day. On Sunday I was grilling out for my Dad and Mom and my daughter came over and ate with us and hung for a while. My oldest son is in Lincoln, Ne and I didn't expect to see him, but he did call and we had a nice conversation and visit. (I do miss him)... But, all in all, a delightfully fulfilling Father's Day, for my children all remembered me. Thank you Father, for family. It is all worth the struggle...
Food for thought...

Focus or Failure?

I always liked the Apostle Peter. It has been opined that he was a brash, impulsive, act-before-you-think type guy, and he probably was. One of my favorite stories about him is found in Matthew 14: 22-33. I'll let you read it at your own convenience, but  it is the story of Peter walking on water.
Now a couple of things to point out before examining the story itself: First, the writer Matthew was one of the original twelve disciples so he would have been an eye-witness to this account- indeed Matthew was in the boat! It is also very probable that he recorded this account after the Gospel of Mark was written to flesh out the account previously recorded- much of John Mark's gospel is thought to have come from Peter, who may have chosen to disclude his role in the account for personal reasons. Now, to summarize the story:
Jesus had been teaching all day and towards the evening he sent his disciples on ahead of him to row to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. They left, he dismissed the crowds and went up the mountain to pray. Meanwhile, a storm arose, and the disciples are fighting wind and waves trying to get across. About 3 a.m. Jesus heads out to join them- and the disciples think they're seeing a ghost, for Jesus is walking out to them on the water! And yes, they're terrified, that gut-wrenching fear that leads some to immobility and others to flee. Even after Jesus calls to them that it is indeed he they're still terrified. Peter, being the brash-acting one, does show he's learned his lessons. The first thing he does is "tests the spirit", or ghost, as he thought it was. Both Jesus' words and examples taught them to challenge the spirits. So Peter does. He says, "If it's really you Lord call me out there with you". And Jesus does. And Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water.
Now this wasn't some little row boat that Peter jumped out of. This was a fishing boat, a large vessel capable of withstanding wind and storm out on the big waters. There were a dozen in the boat and room for more. It was safety, security in the face of the storm. And Peter climbed out. The story says Peter walked toward Jesus. Initially his focus is on his Lord. But the further out he got the more aware of his surroundings he became- and he looked round and started to fear the wind and waves. And he started sinking. Now the story is clear- he's too far from the boat for help, indeed, he cries out to Jesus to "save me!" and Jesus reaches out and lifts him up. Just plucks this burly muscular fisherman out of the brink like it was nothing.
Jesus says to him then, "You of little faith, why did you doubt?" His question is intriguing, for Peter was clearly within reach of his goal when he lost his focus and started looking around. I think there's several good learning points here that answer the question. First, it seems that the human condition, one of sin, allows Satan to prey upon us when we're most vulnerable. And we're most vulnerable when we lean solely on Jesus. The closer we get to Him the harder Satan tries to distract us, to attack our faith. Second, we tend to waver in our faith when we lose our focus and allow ourselves to take our eyes off Jesus.
But I must come to Peter's defense here, for there were twelve in the boat and only one questioned, only one acted- Peter. Perhaps a better question would have been, "Oh you of NO faith, wwhy didn't you join us?" Peter wasn't a failure for losing focus and sinking- Peter got out of the boat and WALKED ON WATER! That my friends is faith in action. A little faith, plus a little focus, equals miracles! As my cousin John Ortberg so aptly named one of his books, "If You Want To Walk on Water You've Got to Get Out of the Boat".
Food for thought...