"There can be no real individual freedom in the presence of economic insecurity." -Chester Bowles
Too many times this last week I have found myself on the verge of tears. Not from physical pain, or emotional trauma. But from a deeply grieved heart. In the evenings I find myself checking the news on the Wii before I watch a show. And every day I am shocked and appalled at the condition of our world. Of our nation. Murders. Shootings. Politics. Unemployment issues. Rape. Terrorist attempts. Drug busts. The list goes on.
I find myself wanting to weep for each life that was lost. I get angry with selfish politicians and higher-ups. I admit I become fearful and wonder if the next attack may be on my hometown, my family, my husband's job, my life. No one is immune.
Christmas is coming soon and I absolutely love everything about this holiday. Decorations, both homemade and store bought. I love setting up the nativity that my mom painted for me 10 years ago, and the stable my dad and husband made before we were married. The paper snowflakes, candle holders, window clings, and eventually the tree. Christmas music played constantly, hot chocolate and candy canes. Bundling up to go look at all the lights. Everything about this holiday entrances me.
But this year I am feeling a little blue. I'm not concerned about being able to provide a rich Christmas for my kids, for I know they are loved and spoiled by multitudes of family. We will never want. :) I am not worried about power outages causing a lack of heat, for we have a full woodshed and a very powerful woodstove. We shall not want for food, either, with a stocked pantry and fridge/freezer.
So why am I blue? Well, how can anyone not feel even slightly unsettled by taking a good look around? Did you know that the national unemployment rate is still at 9.3? That means millions of people are without jobs right now, and many of them are about to lose their unemployment compensation this month. How absolutely awful it would be to know Christmas is 24 days away and you will have no income whatsoever. It's heartbreaking.
I know we have things a whole lot better than it was back during the Depression. But I know that for every person who seems to have it all together, there are dozens more who are suffering right now. A single mother looking in the cupboard and finding maybe a simple bag of potatoes. A father loses his job due to outsourcing is foreclosed on and his family is now on the streets. Mentally disabled people are being abused. Children sexually molested, schools with shootings, bullied gays (and straights) committing suicide, pastors "coming out,", a society that believes marriage as an institution is no longer needed, everything evil corrupting our very lives.
This is why my heart hurts. I am appalled that Washington looks at the sorry state of our nation and announces they are freezing the pay of federal employees, listing the salaries of congressmen to be in the multiple hundreds of thousands. And MILLIONS of people are living beneath the national poverty rate of under $25,ooo for a family of four. I would not be a very good politically correct politician. I could not stand to look at those numbers and continue at the same rate of pay. One could argue, "Oh, they earn their money. Politics is a very difficult field." What about the men in the coal mines, the waitresses making minimum wage, even security officers barely scraping by? Every single job in this nation has importance. And every job has it's troubles. I don't think any job in the world is worth hundreds of thousands of dollars more than any other. The politician would not survive without the grocer, or the farmer, or the electrician, or the jail guard, or the teachers. We are all connected and intertwined, we cannot escape each other.
I am sad. I am sad that life is not ideal. I am sad that people are in pain and children go hungry. I am sad that people willfully hurt the people that they love, and that morals are being forsaken every day.
The only bright spot in all this is that the very thing we are about to celebrate is the birth of the one who came as a savior to this poor, pathetic world. The one who brings hope, life, deliverance and is just and kind to all. He was a man like us and saw the depravity of men. He saw the "righteous" acting unrighteously, he saw war ravaged lands, people killing people, hungry children and abused women. He saw us in our stupidity and humbleness, and he still chose to die in our place. To be the "magic eraser" to clean our hearts of it's nastiness.
Let Jesus be your hope this season. Let his love shine through you. Let us truly be his hands and feet as we live in this fallen world. What can we do, as believers and followers of Christ, to somehow make this evil nation better? That is your mission. That is your goal. To leave this world better than when you got here. To light up the darkness with His light.
13 “You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.
14 “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. 15 No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.
-Matthew 5:13-16
