Wrangler Dani

Once abolish the God and the government becomes the God. – G.K. Chesterton

I’m a do-it-yourselfer.  I grew up taking trips to Home Depot with Dad, riding on the wide lumber cart and “helping” pick out the unwarped boards and endless pipes, drill bits, hardware and power tools that accompanied weekend projects.  My family built our own home, shop and other outbuildings, Dad and Denver are both contractors, and I’ve worked as a wrangler and ranch hand for years – and we all know that country people are nothing if not independent.

So it really gets to me when people expect things to happen for them.  This is a very general observation, but it seems to me that there’s a growing trend of blame – if something doesn’t go our way, it’s Bush’s fault, God’s fault, or our parent’s fault.  It’s our culture, our country, our old-fashioned beliefs that hold us down, we tell ourselves.  If only we could be freed, and have true change, nobody we loved would die, we’d all have dream jobs and no debt, our kids would succeed and our planet would be green and non-global-warmed.

The irony is that those who scream most for freedom are not actually willing to take on this task themselves.  Under Barack Obama’s new tax plan, only “big earners” would be taxed more, in order to help those who earn less. Is that really freedom?  Why do so many rally and chant for change and freedom – when all they are asking for is yet another rule, just placed on someone else?

Obama says that America is broken – that we need change, that we are change.  For a middle-aged man, with a beautiful, successful wife, two healthy kids, a promising career and a shot at being the most powerful man in the world – what exactly is broken about this? How has America treated Obama unfairly?

I think G.K. Chesterton was right on – just as we used to be angry at God for evil in the world or other things we don’t understand, now we rail at the governement for not keeping us safe, well-fed, well-educated, prosperous and happy.  Gone are the days of pulling ourselves up and achieving our dreams, now we demand that someone more successful pull us up and finance our dreams for us.

I for one, don’t believe America is broken.  I don’t think the government can solve all my problems, nor would I want it to.  I know that I can’t do it all myself, because I know that I need God at work in me, but I also know that He delights in all of us and wants us to have abundant life.

Happy Independence Day, everybody.