it should be laissez-faire

I have, for the majority of this political season, sat quietly and listened. And I have seen the writing on the wall -- what this election season has the potential to do to the structure of the United States.

I have seen friends take their stand on issues close to home, to decry the current government situation and those who would stand to back it. Here is where I will do the same. I will do so because in this politically-charged environment, unless I have my say, I will be counted among those who NEVER DID.

I once heard a set of lyrics that resonated with me: "Stand for truth, stand for life, stand for somethin, don't fall for nothin."

Truth is in God's Word.

It never was about party lines. It was about convictions and the Truth. Here we are again faced with an election that does not concern the color of your vote -- red or blue -- but rather the beliefs driving it. As with every election, this vote counts.

You may say that the sacred and secular cannot or should not mix. That church and state can't tango in the public arena. Really? You honestly believe that politicians don't mix their convictions with reality? Do you actively check your mind at the door every day or just sometimes? Because that's what your expectation is. And this is the result (see enclosed link).

Nothing you touch remains neutral. Your convictions spill into everything you do, think, and say.

Some of us think the government owes us. The same government that can't make ends meet? Yeah, that one. I don't want that kind of "help" -- it comes with a certain amount of dependency and entrapment. Or enslavement, whichever you prefer.

Heck, if I wanted to be dependent on government, I wouldn't work. I would "sign up" just like this die-hard Cleveland woman did. Free cell phones since 2008! Just vote for Obama and you'll get yours, too. Honestly I don't think I could do it. If I didn't work, I couldn't pay my own bills, keep food on the table, own a car or cell phone, couldn't have a house much less afford rent for an apartment -- it certainly wouldn't be my prerogative to ask for more when I'm given enough to live on.

Look, before you go blasting me for judging people who are not able to provide for themselves, understand that I was in such a position in life not long ago. My parents lived paycheck to paycheck when I was an infant. When I was two years old, my father died in a freak accident at work. We had next to nothing for years, but we were content. Mom pinched pennies. I know what it feels like to be poor. That's the brief overview.

There are people who need mercy and help, from the church or concerned friends and family or from government programs specifically designed to helping them get back on their feet. Unfortunately, in a fallen world, ugly things happen to people. Thankful to a God who never let our plates go empty or the roof over our heads fall in.

My question, however, remains: When it's used for something other than what it's meant for, then why was it given in the first place? Where is the limit?

There are some people who take and abuse government handouts. If the government will do menial things such as provide food and shelter, why not also have them pay my way to DirectTV, food stamps for use at Starbucks (yes, they do try), vacations to Disneyland, or splurge for a little Dolce&Gabbana to spice up my wardrobe. Why not fund my promiscuous behavior by providing free birth control.

Again, where is the limit?

The entitlement mentality is a problem. I'm sorry, but whenever is it a good thing for government to get involved in the people's choice? Are we still children that the government should swoop down and hold our hands? No thanks. It should be laissez-faire, as it has been from early on. This is the type of government involvement that is lax when it comes to meddling in my personal affairs.

The last time I checked, the best place to get government-supplied-everything is jail. Does that tell you anything? It's still at the expense of tax payers (of which I most certainly am), because someone has to pay for it. Nothing is entirely free, after all.

Right now, I'm feeling pretty encroached upon by our all-invasive government. A welfare state that seems to disperse hope as fast as it tries to instill it. I don't want a government that will pay my bills. I want a government that will appropriately represent me. I don't want a president who sinks his efforts into superficial issues such as political correctness and tolerance. I want a president who will rally behind Israel in its attempts to survive. Yet here I am again disappointed.

Let's get some perspective.

"Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from every brother who leads an unruly life and not according to the tradition which you received from us. For you ought to follow our example, because we did not act in an undisciplined manner among you, nor did we eat anyone's bread without paying for it, but with labor and hardship we kept working night and day so that we would not be a burden to any of you; not because we do not have the right to this, but in order to offer ourselves as a model for you, so that you would follow our example. For even when we were with you, we used to give you this order: if anyone is not willing to work, then he is not to eat, either. For we hear that some among you are leading an undisciplined life, doing no work at all, but acting like busybodies. Now such persons we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to work in quiet fashion and eat their own bread. But as for you, brethren, do not grow weary of doing good." -- 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13

My prayer is that you will stand for somethin this election season.