I gave my life to Christ more than 30 years ago. Why did I do it? To be honest, I did it to try to save my first marriage not myself. I, like many of you and as scripture says usually hit rock bottom before we finally begin to see the light. My marriage was on the rocks and I did as much as I could to try to save it but no matter what I did, it didn't seem like anything was working.
To be honest, if both parties are unwilling to engage in that relationship and that commitment, the chances of any reconciliation are significantly diminished. I even moved us to Idaho thinking that it would make a difference. Well, God seemed to have other plans. My first wife and I were divorced a year or so after we got here and several years later she had stage 4 Melanoma and passed, six months later my mom passed as well.
Although my first wife and I were friends till the end, I have to come to terms with the fact that sometimes no matter what we do or no matter what we want, God has other plans and we as His followers are tasked with trying to come to terms with those facts and they are never easy. On a brighter note as some of you know, I was remarried and have had 23 years of marriage to an amazing woman that as a city boy, I found a country girl at the Caldwell Night Rodeo (when tickets were 6.00 each! LOL).
I chose to share a personal part of my life here because I want readers to know I have grown a lot since that time and since I have become an activist around the state and not because what I went through was easy but because it was challenging and at times, extremely difficult. One of the best things I have learned that I never imagined is that I truly love people more than I thought I did. I also learned that part of that love for others is to listen to who they are, how they feel, why they hurt and although I may not be able to do anything for them (which I still find absolutely frustrating), I can listen, Sometimes its all we have.
In a conversation with a woman once, I expressed my deep frustration and sadness that God would place me in front of so many hurting people but didn't give me the tools to help them and she said something so profound, I thought I would share it with you, She said that the world is a place filled with selfishness where people are all about themselves and people spend more time ironically wanting to be heard than hearing others and apparently I am seen by many to listen more than I speak (and I speak a lot!) and people as you can imagine have a lot to say and have feelings they feel they can't share with others. Sometimes people are depressed because they feel what they say or how they feel isn't important. What if merely listening could change the world, would you do more of it? If we aren't sure, shouldn't we do it anyway?
The important thing to remember is that if God never places us anywhere without the tools he wants us to use. If puts us somewhere, how He equips us should be sufficient and we should find comfort in that fact. Most times with the hustle and bustle of life and watching the world fall apart we lose sight of that, I know I do. It also means that just because God has a plan for our lives doesn't mean we should not engage in life attempting to make the right decisions as we hope the one's we make are correct but to do nothing but wait, to me is unbiblical.
I was on the radio with Kevin Miller this morning (580KIDOAM-Boise) as I usually am most mornings and there was a first time caller that sounded so discouraged, he said reluctantly: "Well, I guess all we can do is pray." I felt the pain in this guys heart as he spoke and I became so indignant I called in. I wasn't angry at him per se, I was angry because Evil is destroying the hearts and minds of my fellow Idahoans and I cannot stand and willingly allow it without addressing it and attempting, with all the love I have, to try to correct it and to try to encourage him that there is always far more that can be done and that if he wanted to do more he could reach out to me to see if in some way I could help.
I know if I couldn't do anything for him, I could at least listen. We all know that sometimes we get depressed when things don't go our way but what we don't know is how emotionally volatile people can be and if not addressed could lead to catastrophic consequences. I'll be darned if I am going to sit back and allow my fellow peeps to wallow in self despair if I can do something about it! After all, I spend my life talking and listening to people, preaching the unpleasant truth at times but also trying to find ways to encourage and get people to engage in our culture war as we see Evil abound.
I guess what I want to say to him or to anyone else that is suffering as they see our dire situation, is that although prayer is necessary, it is never all that can be done. We have been commanded by God to pray but we have also been commanded to shine the light of truth on the darkness and that means becoming active, spiritually as well as politically.
This is my invitation to you to seek from within how you can be a part of the solution in a time where it looks like solutions are no longer possible. If you are lost and don't know where to go or who to talk to, call me. If you don't like me or my suggestions, I know lots of other people that could use your help and we can plug you in.
If you are one that already prays, Good for you, we all need it but if you are not active in the political fight, you need to be because if you are not in it, you need to remember that the enemy is and every day you are not active is another day your children will become enslaved by the enemy. I learned after decades of being a dad and a husband that my life on Earth isn't solely to enjoy MY life as much as it is to secure that ability for our posterity- Pay it forward they say? After all there is no greater love than to give your life for another." To me, that saying doesn't mean you need to die necessarily, but you need to be cognizant of your surroundings and try to love others as more than yourself of at least the same. Sure it is great to enjoy your life but I guess what I am saying is that it is quite different when we do so at the expense of future generations.
Edmund Burke Once said: All if takes for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing."
God may have other plans for this nation other than what we want and the work we do, but maybe, just maybe, he wants to see if we believe his gift to us is worth saving by understanding the most vital role we play as American's is not only for his kingdom but to bless the entire world rather than attempting to control it.
Prayer is not all there is, let us act now before it is all there is.