The road to heaven is a path of choices. Choices between right and wrong. Of doing what is good for ones self or what is good for others. The choice to serve God or to wait for God and others to serve you. But these choices cannot be faced if they are taken away, restricted or made for us.
When the Soviet Union loomed over Asia and Europe, the communist regime attempted to portray a Utopian society of equals who relinquished their belief in the final judgment of a creator for a state run benefactor who treated all as equals. Choices were made for those who capitulated. Those who didn't were made to suffer the consequences of one who betrays their benefactor. The end result was, of course, a financially and morally bankrupt shell of a nation which fell to the opportunity of freedom and choice. The Russian Orthodox religion came out of their seventy years of hiding to flourish as the statues of false gods such as Lenin, Marx and Stalin were toppled by the power of the people.
As a nation whose roots run deep with the promise of a freedom to worship, to choose and to grow, we Americans often find ourselves having to decide if the state should usurp our choices so we don't have to make them. While we may have made the moral decision, we have a tendency to want to make that same decision for others. Rather than doing God's work by offering the answers, we opt for the easy way out by dictating through our legal system.
Our nation's greatest offering of freedom is at the ballot box when we put our over reaching politicians in check by taking away some of their power. The responsibility comes when the choices are given back to us. A government with less social outreach requires a greater individual conscious toward helping those in need. History shows that we have always opened our hearts and wallets when public funding through taxes is reduced. But when our government takes away our choices and our financial ability, we are left with a struggling populace and a government with more people to serve that is ever financially possible.
In our two party system we see evidence of both side's trying to take away our choices. To dictate their own morality on us. Neither sides 'social issues' has proven to be popular among the majority, though they seem to think a party victory is a validation of 100% of their ideals. And thus we make our choice at the ballot box, causing the pendulum to swing in the opposite direction.
Freedom with the weight of responsibility or restriction and the inability to create our own moral path? In our democracy, we should weigh the consequences of this question every time we cast a ballot. And the real results of our vote comes on reckoning day.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Monday, August 30, 2010
Step Up!
As we follow examples of those who guide us. As we idolize, emulate and hero worship those we put on pedestals, we create a training program for our future selves.
Think back on the people who've come into your life and made a difference. How much like them have you become? Did they touch your life enough to make you alter your course? Help you see with clearer vision? Did they hand you tools to give you strength and build your character in a way in which you couldn't have done on your own?
Whether they are good people who lead you by example, or people whose deafness to life's lessons remind you to open your eyes, ears and mind to the needs of the world around you, both can give you direction.
These people who take us by the hand will not always be there for us. But the lessons they taught us will be carried for the rest of our lives. They are also the lessons we must share with those we mentor, guide and teach. When the teacher is gone, it is our calling to step up. Share the tools. To lead the way.
If we are blessed with a heaven of eternal peace and happiness then we must begin to create it here on earth to prepare us for our reward. Lets not forget the messages of those who have come and gone from our lives. Remember what made them special. Their strengths and their failings. Learn from them and grow because of them. Step up and take their place when they are no longer able to. And rest assured that someone will fill our shoes as we move forward.
Think back on the people who've come into your life and made a difference. How much like them have you become? Did they touch your life enough to make you alter your course? Help you see with clearer vision? Did they hand you tools to give you strength and build your character in a way in which you couldn't have done on your own?
Whether they are good people who lead you by example, or people whose deafness to life's lessons remind you to open your eyes, ears and mind to the needs of the world around you, both can give you direction.
These people who take us by the hand will not always be there for us. But the lessons they taught us will be carried for the rest of our lives. They are also the lessons we must share with those we mentor, guide and teach. When the teacher is gone, it is our calling to step up. Share the tools. To lead the way.
If we are blessed with a heaven of eternal peace and happiness then we must begin to create it here on earth to prepare us for our reward. Lets not forget the messages of those who have come and gone from our lives. Remember what made them special. Their strengths and their failings. Learn from them and grow because of them. Step up and take their place when they are no longer able to. And rest assured that someone will fill our shoes as we move forward.
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Smile Away All Bitterness
Smile! It opens so many doors. It welcomes people. It inspires. It has the power to guide others to optimism. And it makes your face more attractive.
As I add years to my history I can't help but notice the people who forget the smiling, positive attitude that made them attractive to others. Life makes some people bitter. But that's not a natural progression, it's merely a choice. "Life's not fair." We've all heard that since we were kids. But there comes a time when we have to come to terms with the truthfulness of that statement. The reality of life is that we are going to face unplanned crisis', tragedy, hardship and loss. But that should be no surprise. Nobody is exempt from these. Some people just make handling them look easier.
Faith plays a huge role in being an optimist. I guess you have to be one if you're going to base your life on a day of reckoning with an endgame judgment from a loving creator. Every smiling optimist I know has a strong core of faith. I've never met an agnostic or atheist who didn't have an edge of bitterness and an egotistic air of being superior to those who pray. That's why people of faith are proven to live longer.
Being a negative person just because things didn't go the way you wanted, you didn't get the material things you prayed for, or you lost love in your life, is just an excuse to not work out the smile muscles in your face and feel sorry for yourself. Pity parties become more trendy with people as they age. But life isn't about how much you have or have achieved, it's about how you cope with the unexpected. And how we treat others along the way. I have met many happy people who faced more than their share of hardship. These same people continue to lift up others with their glowing smiles and welcoming hands of kindness. The old adage "That which doesn't kill us makes us stronger" is not a guarantee, it's a choice.
There is also some truth to what we were told as children when we made a face at someone..."Be careful, your face might freeze that way", it works with smiles too. Once you plant one firmly on your face and get those muscles in shape, it will stay there. And it's a welcoming sign to your heart. Turn it on, open up and let a happy life in!
As I add years to my history I can't help but notice the people who forget the smiling, positive attitude that made them attractive to others. Life makes some people bitter. But that's not a natural progression, it's merely a choice. "Life's not fair." We've all heard that since we were kids. But there comes a time when we have to come to terms with the truthfulness of that statement. The reality of life is that we are going to face unplanned crisis', tragedy, hardship and loss. But that should be no surprise. Nobody is exempt from these. Some people just make handling them look easier.
Faith plays a huge role in being an optimist. I guess you have to be one if you're going to base your life on a day of reckoning with an endgame judgment from a loving creator. Every smiling optimist I know has a strong core of faith. I've never met an agnostic or atheist who didn't have an edge of bitterness and an egotistic air of being superior to those who pray. That's why people of faith are proven to live longer.
Being a negative person just because things didn't go the way you wanted, you didn't get the material things you prayed for, or you lost love in your life, is just an excuse to not work out the smile muscles in your face and feel sorry for yourself. Pity parties become more trendy with people as they age. But life isn't about how much you have or have achieved, it's about how you cope with the unexpected. And how we treat others along the way. I have met many happy people who faced more than their share of hardship. These same people continue to lift up others with their glowing smiles and welcoming hands of kindness. The old adage "That which doesn't kill us makes us stronger" is not a guarantee, it's a choice.
There is also some truth to what we were told as children when we made a face at someone..."Be careful, your face might freeze that way", it works with smiles too. Once you plant one firmly on your face and get those muscles in shape, it will stay there. And it's a welcoming sign to your heart. Turn it on, open up and let a happy life in!
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