As promised, I would dovetail off the previous post regarding the assassination attempt on Donald Trump's life and the relief and gratitude that I and so many others have that he's not only still alive but basically made it with only a scratch (proverbially).
As I was watching various videos of the Republican National Convention being held in Milwaukee this week, I was overcome with gratitude for the evident love that I see not just for President Trump but also for our people, our country. People singing patriotic songs of gratitude and resilience, chanting Trump's name, and chanting our country's name - it was all sweet, harmonious, and orderly. This is the kind of country and society that people should want.
I also think his pick for JD Vance as his running mate is a good one. One of the things that stood out to me about him is his platform to help build a country (economy, structure, etc) that will encourage American families to have more children. Although my love and I are currently in agreement about not having kids, that's more because 1.) of finances (due to the economy of the last 4 years), and 2.) our respective families of origin not only did not do anything to help teach us about being parents, but they also repeatedly sabotaged opportunities for us to learn. In an economic environment (and being reestablished in a position of strength around the world) conducive to having larger families, we would absolutely consider it. That said, philosophically I am all for American citizens (families specifically) having more kids. Better us than the majority of those that have cross over our borders proliferating our land over the last 4 years, largely consisting of military-age men from foreign countries specifically seeking to wreak havoc on our society.
When I was 18 I began identifying as a liberal. That was for two reasons: 1.) I was verbally attacked for my national identity in England by locals, just a few short months after we had invaded Iraq, and 2.) I was surrounded by liberals - my family, my friends, my church community. Between the personal attacks and "my people" being what they were, I quickly fell in line. It took years for me to move away from that to be where I am now, largely due to getting saved and coming to agreement with the Bible's stance on various topics (homosexuality, abortion, etc).
But what was interesting was that I had already begun, prior to age 18, to forming my own view based on what I had been reading and studying in history class during middle school. Reading about the American Civil War and Reconstruction formed the early foundation of not just the rightness of what the United States stood for, but also what was to me a vague understanding of how God played a role. In our country's first 100 years, slavery of blacks was the big issue. Slavery is wrong, and it is a sin. We know that God hates sin and that He loves His creation, especially His people who choose to love Him back. What stood out to me was that it was the Republican Party (Abraham Lincoln, et al) who served as the vehicle for taking a major step in righting a wrong. That was huge for me.
Somehow I was later led to believe (I don't have a timeline as to when) that at some point after Reconstruction, it was the Democrats and not the Republicans who had assumed the moral responsibility of caring for the disadvantaged and the less fortunate. Y'know, the people that God really cares about:
Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1:27, NIV
As it turned out, that's simply not the case. In the case of immigration alone, and considering the case of the city of Chicago alone, Mayor Brandon Johnson (a Democrat) chose to "welcome the immigrants* with open arms." What did that mean, exactly? By evicting those immigrants and forcing the nearby suburbs to take them on? Or, how about giving away the programs and dollars promised to disadvantaged black folks in your city's rough neighborhoods who were counting on that -- to the immigrants instead?
Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine and champions at mixing drinks, who acquit the guilty for a bribe, but deny justice to the innocent. Isaiah 5:22-23, NIV
Woe to those who make unjust laws, to those who issue oppressive decrees, to deprive the poor of their rights and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people, making widows their prey and robbing the fatherless. Isaiah 10:1-2, NIV
(*Never mind that the majority of the immigrants are not families like it's being purported in mainstream news media; rather, they are military-age men smuggling in drugs and weapons and murdering anyone who gets in their way. Laken Riley, anyone? If we're going to exalt the names of Travyon Martin and George Floyd, among others, then we must also recognize folks like Laken Riley, Kate Steinle, Jeremy Poou Caceres, Shannon Patricia Jungwirth, Jorge Alexander Reyes-Jungwirth, Alberto Trejo Estrada, among others.)
One bit of trepidation I personally regarding choosing the date that I chose for my wedding date was due to the higher chances of severe weather in our area during this time of year. In the last few years alone, including earlier this week (which I'll get to more in a moment), I've personally had to seek shelter during a tornado warning a total of 4 times. I didn't really try to keep track of previous instances, but I think I've only had to shelter maybe a couple other times previously. Last year, an EF-0 twister touched down maybe a mile from where I was, on July 12th. I'm grateful that it was only an EF-0, and that its track didn't last very long. It was still a scary moment though, and one that made me realize the risk of our wedding day being in the peak of the severe-weather season.
Which brings me to earlier this week. On Monday, my housemates and I had to seek shelter in the basement late in the evening. I haven't had a chance to find the exact track of any twisters yet, but a report came out regarding an EF-1 that came very close to downtown Chicago. The Democratic National Convention is set to meet here, in Chicago, at the United Center just west of downtown. That is, a mere few blocks from where I think (based on reported locations/intersections that got hit) that tornado track was. This week the Republicans had their convention, and it was so heartwarming to see the love for God and the love for one another (and not just for Trump but certainly including him) on full display. But they were in Milwaukee. The Democrats are coming here next month, and I'm confident that that kind of love for one another, let alone for God, will most definitely not be present. I believe it's because of God's mercy towards us that the United Center (where the DNC will convene) -- let alone the Daley Center (Chicago's City Hall) -- wasn't just outright demolished by one of those twisters.
I've been reading through the books of Isaiah, Micah, 2nd Kings, and 2nd Chronicles lately in my daily Bible reading, among other Biblical books. The nations of Israel and Judah have been forsaking God and their covenant with Him. A price has to be paid eventually. For the Israelites, it was the Assyrian army who took them out. For the Judahites, although the Assyrians attacked Jerusalem, it was the Babylonians who would take them out later. Most significantly, the high places of worship to all the false gods were destroyed, as well as the high places of worship to the One True God.
The Republican Party is honoring God. The Democrats refuse to even acknowledge Him, let alone honor Him. I'm grateful God has had mercy on my family and community despite our close proximity to the wickedness present in the city of Chicago, as well as the overwhelming wickedness that will soon descend on our land in just a few short weeks. But I also know that His Day is coming. He does want all to repent and receive Him as their God, but He will not wait forever.
The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9, NIV
Then the Lord said, “My Spirit will not contend with humans forever, for they are mortal; their days will be a hundred and twenty years.” Genesis 6:3, NIV
No comments:
Post a Comment