“For Ourselves and Our Posterity”

I find it hard sometimes to organize my mind into simple, whimsical posts about the daily goings on with homeschooling, homemaking and creating beauty in our lives. It isn’t that those activities aren’t happening… It’s just that these days there’s a certain disconnect with the “state of the Union” and the values I hold dear. I’m sure you’ve all heard the phrase, “It is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong”, right?

There’s a level of stability needed to allow whimsy to bloom. It’s hard to become enraptured by polymer clay, delve wholeheartedly into the history of Rome, and tackle the difficult Algebra problems … when you hear of your fellow Americans being oppressed and labeled as instigators of “hate”… all because they want to see congress balance a budget, stop the illegal actions of the NSA and IRS, and prevent the mandate of Americans going against their conscience to fund abortion through Obamacare.

So why has my blog taken such a silent turn?  The headlines leave me heavy. I feel a burden for this generation of children – my children – that goes beyond the pressure of where the college money will come from or how their SAT and ACT scores will turn out.

It isn’t the financial difficulties. Those come and go. I’ll admit that the economy is sickly – brought about by puffed up gasoline prices and the highest unemployment rate ever. The car is being tricky with cryptic engine codes and never ceases to remind me how few miles I have left to cross before I hit the 200K mark. Those things are scary some-days, but we’ve lived in lean times for many years. I know God is somehow going to get us through. His track record is astounding.

It isn’t the stress of preschool and high school simultaneously exploding off my to-do list in a symphony of subjects and syllabi. Lord knows we stay busy around here, but my house is often brimming with laughter and we aren’t afraid to poke fun at ourselves; even when tensions end in tantrums.

A mere lack of spare change and a wicked workload is no match for optimism in Jesus.

A girl can carry a heavy load on her shoulders; heavier than you might think. However, the more history I learn, the more distrust in this world I feel building up in my gut. The American optimism I was fed a steady diet of in my school days waxes thinner with each news article I read, hear, and see.

Times are troubling when you figure out the government might not share your value system any more. It’s enough to make a free-thinking homeschool mom ponder about the future her children are inheriting, much less the trillions of dollars worth of national debt.

Is it any wonder I’m not telling you about our latest art projects and sharing recipes and printables when our national leaders are up to all kind of unpatriotic mischief?

• The military labeling conservative Christian political action lists as hate groups

• An administration bent on extreme positions

• The raging of the “gun control” debate

• How common it is becoming for really bad judges to ruin people’s lives

• The industry bent on destroying our food supply

• Hostility towards Christians around the world

• Asylum taken away from a sweet homeschool family from Germany who were terrorized by their government just because they homeschool… but amnesty given to illegals and many released from prison who have committed violent crimes against Americans?

• Syrian rebels linked with the Muslim Brotherhood – who desire to destroy the West and subjugate Christians to death or dhimmitude – backed and funded by our own government?

• Governments in Poland and Cypress emptying personal retirement accounts and our own government inching towards this possibility…

• Democrats so angry at conservatives they are screaming for martial law.

• Obamacare facts: the law requires hiring 16000 new IRS agents 2 enforce it & establishes 159 new gov agencies & 21 tax increases. All this when the IRS has already been illegally targeting conservatives like Ben Carson just because they speak out against the president and his policies.

• GMOs and designer babies– US patent companies and big AG (or should I say chemical companies )

• A government shut down because one branch chooses to steal the power vested by the people of this nation away from the other… the checks and balances of the free world being illegally tampered with… a dictatorship in the making. Whispers of Rome.

Is it my duty as a homemaker, a citizen, a mother, a teacher, to be mentally – financially even – involved in the fray of current events and politics?

What does God say about my duties and priorities?

As a mother and homemaker it is my duty to nourish and care for my kids, training them in the way of the Lord. I believe that I should protect my kids, but not shelter my children from the truth. Instead, it is my calling to gradually prepare them for the kind of world they are inheriting so they can be a light and a leader. My first duty is to nourish my kids – their bodies with food, their hearts with love, their soul with God’s Word… and then … as their teacher… to teach them values and truth. Part of that truth is the state of the nation. Living in oblivion is not an option. God says ‘My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge’ (Hosea 4:6).

The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. ~ Reverend Charles F. Aked

As a citizen, it is my duty to stand in the gap for my children. The result of today’s elections equals the political landscape of tomorrow. Elections effect not only the people who serve but the every-day lives of all the governed. Laws are made and fortunes are effected. They need to see us – those who are of age to participate in the political process – trying to figure out how to solve problems before they end up causing catastrophe on our nation; not just sitting back and allowing the nation to crumble, the debt to skyrocket, and their futures be given over to financial ruin or war.

Yes. I believe it is EVERY American’s duty to serve their God and country, protect and bless their posterity, and to stand up and do what is right in the eyes of the Lord. Serving may not be the same for everyone. I don’t think every person needs to be in the military; however, everyone can do something – and ALL of us should be engaged and not apathetic. As a Texan, I take my obligation to teach “Good Citizenship” to my homeschooled kids seriously.

Have you seen any of the videos after election day (both this past election and 2008) where they asked random people about who they were voting for and why? There were people who admitted that they voted for Obama just because of his skin color – which shouldn’t even be a consideration, and neither should someone’s “looks”. Come on, can we get any more shallow? Sadly today, there are still those who believe anyone who disagrees with the Obama administration’s principles (or lack thereof) is racist. It  scares me to death that there are people out there who don’t know the difference in “Obamacare” and “The Affordable Care Act”. The voting base in this country is more politically illiterate today than ever before.

We have a two-party system that is broken. There is a moral divide within the party that claims to be “conservative”. Things are looking pretty ugly. But hey – at least we have plenty to pray about.

A man in Iraq asked my husband while he was there, “We have one option on our ballot here, and you have two. How does that make you more free?”

I want more than this for my children. Don’t you?

Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.

~ Ronald Reagan, March 1961

And so I wake up each day with urgent prayers. I make my lists and check them twice. I try to find out from unbiased and non-compromised news sources about who’s naughty and nice. We get about the business of living with a real sense of gratitude for the freedoms we still have- and vow to protect them with our voices and our active participation in the politics of this day.

We stop to call and engage our leaders.
We write letters and sign petitions.
We offer to help with campaigns.
We spread the word.
We pray.

We participate in this great experiment: the government by the people, for the people… the last experiment until the lasting rule of Christ our loving King.

We don’t hide from the hard truths because we know that this little light of ours will do no good under a bushel.

When you’re living in darkness, even a little light can make a powerful difference. ~ Carolyn Custis James

So I hope that you know that while I’m avoiding the heavy stuff on my blog (most of the time), it isn’t because I’m shrinking from it. You can follow my tweets and facebook banter to see my daily outrage over the latest unbelievable (yet always more and more believable) bad news from Washington. You can also follow my Pinterest, where I like to hide away from the real world.

I promise to try and get up a happy homeschool post soon. Or maybe a recipe. A girl has to eat.

Whew. I feel much better. You are such a great listener.

In Him,

Heather

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