Friday, February 26, 2010

Confession: Yes, I want President Obama to fail, too (Repost)

There, I said it. Finally! It’s off my chest. Now the world (or at least my little part of it) can know the truth about me: I do not want the President to be successful. This is not meant to suggest that I don’t want America to be successful because nothing could be further from the truth. I deeply love my country and it is because of that great admiration that I yearn for this President to be stunningly ineffective in his attempt to “change” it.


This forthright and abrupt declaration has been bubbling below the surface of my consciousness since the election, yet I kept it quietly to myself. After the election and before he took office, I heard so many herald - much to my chagrin – that now he was our president and we must “get behind him for the good of our country.” Really?

First, allow me a short digression. This statement that so many have decreed is utterly annoying on two fronts. First, he won and  my side lost, and, well, that just burns me. It was just two Presidential elections ago that the man we now call Commander-in-Chief was denied entry to the Democratic National Convention. It seems in 2000 he was not even on the national political radar. Today he is the leader of the free world. It seems paying dues isn’t as patriotic as paying taxes. Okay, I’ll be the first to admit it. That just chaps my hide.

The second and perhaps a more appropriate reason why that “get behind him” statement provokes me into fits of rage and tantrum indicative of my German heritage is Barack Obama was the President-elect – not the president. He became the president at noon on Inauguration Day – or was the following day when he re-stated the Oath in the Map Room? I’ll suppose I don’t really know. You’ll have to ask White House council. That answer is above my pay grade.

Now back to my point. When I hear people say I should get behind Obama, I shudder and cringe and not for those “annoying” reasons I just stated. What is so stunning to me is that some of these people who boldly suggest we affirm Obama worked and prayed desperately along side me for other candidates to win because they thought him wrong for America. Now, these same people are telling me to suck it up and toe the line behind this former community organizer and his congressional cronies. Are you kidding me?! Obama’s policies haven’t changed; only his title has. Why would I get behind someone who wants to bring socialized medicine to America? That is still wrong. And what about his view on abortion? Gay marriage? Taxes? The environment? Foreign Relations? His policies are all wrong for our country and yet I am supposed to ignore all that and just give the appearance of bipartisanship. No dice, compatriots. It just ain’t gonna happen.

We live in very divisive times. Many in the media are guzzling Obama’s brand of Kool-Aid and they not asking the tough questions. So, we have to. Us. The citizenry. We are a Republic – a government of the People and for the People. They work for us. The cabinet, the Administration, the Congress, and, yes, the President. I will not sit quietly by while the President makes bad decision after bad decision that leads us into global socialization and complete dependence on the government. Part of patriotism to me is to stand my ground and question my leaders, and the responsibility of checks and balances falls on all our shoulders. We can not be politically apathetic just because we lost the White House. Nor can we create turmoil where it doesn’t belong. This is not a call to anarchy; checks and balances is all I’m advocating. With great privilege comes great responsibility. We have the privilege to examine our leaders; to demand they hold their leading of our nation accountable to us. The question I have is do we possess the courage. Do we have the fortitude and the resilience within our own convictions to stand firm in our patriotic duty? Will we sacrifice what we know is morally right for a semblance of unity? Or will we actually stay the course and hold out for the real deal? I am talking about authentic unity. I am talking about not a façade of togetherness, but genuine cohesiveness; the likes of which we have never before seen.

Like Regan, I believe in that shining city on a hill; though her light has dimmed in recent years. The glow of optimism and positive expectation have faded, but we are the keepers of the light; the salt of the earth. As Christians, we are called to serve a higher billing. Though "hope" has been hijacked, we know whom its rightful owner is. And our mission, our cause, our duty is to audaciously hold firm to our resolve and see that city reignited by the unity of her citizens. “We shall overcome” is no longer just the epitaph for a Civil Rights movement dedicated only to independence from majority tyranny, but it is now also the battle cry to those who hold these truths self-evident that all men are created – by the Creator. Should we prevail in our steadfastness, we will one day be able to proclaim this great experiment called America an irrefutable success because no one – no foreign sovereign, no fundamental terrorist, no political party – will ever again be allowed to trespass on our commitment to be The United States of America - one nation under God.


A short disclaimer: This took me several days to write and I share it with all of you mostly just to begin a discussion. This is how I feel; it is my opinion. Perhaps you have another. While I feel very strongly about what I stated in this post, I also feel strongly that we need to pray for our president and our government. This is a not about compromising our ideals. It is about holding onto what makes you who you are. If you give too much of that away in the spirit of bipartisianship then somewhere along the line you stop being you. Again, this is meant to spur a discussion. Thanks for taking the time to read it!

dated February 8, 2009 - Brandi Borgstadt

Saturday, February 20, 2010

Confession: Poem from a Spec of Dust

It isn't that I don't love you;
It isn't that I don't care.
It's because I'm in this wilderness
and the boundaries become unclear.

"Search for the path my sweet one.
Hunger so deep for the light
As the blood moon sketches its shadows
in the deliberate, solemn night."

Send angles to beseech me, God;
Send angels to sing a song!
Press close to my heart, dear Lord
and keep me from all wrong.

"Hoard my love, my love
Gather it up like a comfort,
Dance in my mercy, dear one
and feel your precious worth!

It is because I love you!
It is because I care!
The wilderness can not keep you;
In my blood you are spared!"

Your love does not relent, my King
It conquers and sets me free!
You pursue with jealous fire,
burning the impurity from me!

"...make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word..." Ephesians 5:26


Confession:  I am not a poet. Yet, this was in my heart today. So, for what it's worth I will share it and hope it reaches you. I struggle like so many with my heart, my thoughts, and my flesh. The enemy knows my weaknesses. And the Lord knows them, too. I remember a time when I was still lost and a women gave a word in a church I was visiting. It changed my life and I recall it often.

That morning I had cried the entire drive across town begging God to show me he was still there. I had lost track of him somewhere in my childhood and no matter how hard I tried, I simply couldn't feel him anymore. Despondent, I prayed for him to come find me. I needed him to tell me I was okay; that it was all going to be okay. I needed my daddy to come pick me up from the mud and clean me off.  I was alone and in fear that he wouldn't want me anymore. I was in fear that, like so many had before, he figured out I wasn't worth loving - worth protecting - and should be tossed aside. I walked into that church thinking if I don't leave with something from God I will know what others had said was true. So, I took a deep breath and sat down in the back row with tears still streaming down my face.

That morning, a woman stood up in this church and stopped the pastor from moving on with the service. She told him she had a message for someone. She said something was burning in her spirit and she just couldn't let him go on without sharing it. He gave her the mic, she turned to the congregation and said: I know who you are. I know where you've been. I know where you are going. And I made you anyway. I made you anyway! You are my child and I love you!

From the depths of my being I sobbed. I knew that message was for me. God knew who I was!  He knew my sins. He knew I was just dust but he loved me anyway. He still does! I ache for the Lord. Yet, still - even still - I make wrong choices and compromise my heart. Yet, still - even still - the Lord brings be back to the cross and forgives me all over again.

I can not wait until we are with him and it is just us- just the Bride and Bridegroom. There are times when that desire is so strong I can't think of anything else. In my mind's eye I see myself resting my head against the Lord. I feel his heartbeat on my cheek. Tears come so easily and I ask, "When? When will it be just this?" He answers, "Soon." For this short period we are lovers torn apart. Time has not yet weaved us back together.  But it will.  "Soon." 


Until then, I will be love sick, taking the moments I can with the Lord in worship and the word. But I will always be aching for that day when I can rest my head on him and let the struggles of this world pass into the abyss. For he is my one true love...

Saturday, February 13, 2010

Ladies Unite!

I don't know about you, but I think we need a revolution. Our mothers and grandmothers of decades past helped us get the vote. They also helped pave the way for equal pay for equal work. To them, I am grateful, sort of.. You see, there is a less palatable byproduct of their efforts, and it is on that subject I can no longer remain silent. To what am I referring, you may ask? To which I reply, don’t tell me you don’t know! Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed that while we strived so earnestly for our independence from men that you failed to notice this very important thing: We got it! What a curve ball that ended up being! I, for one, am growing tired of burdens of autonomy. Women were once beloved and cherished, but no longer. When God handed down judgments to Adam and Eve, he told Adam he would have to be a servant to the land. To Eve he gave the yoke of pain during childbirth. Yet, though our independence from men we have assumed their yoke as well! What were we thinking? So, now is the time for a revolution, and here is the kicker. The opposition is not men. The opposition is not government. The opposition is within ourselves. Our men are supposed to be our support. They are our balance, our counterparts. They are strong where we are weak and vice versa. For them to respect us we must first respect them. And so, ladies, I call for a revolution. Let your men be men! Let your boys be boys! Let them hold the door, pay for meals, lead on the dance floor. Let them hold your hand and guide you down some icy stairs. Let them be your comfort and your protection. Let them be your man! Ladies, unite! Stop giving your affection away to men who choose to dishonor you. Stop rewarding poor behavior with your time and care. Require they treat you with respect and dignity not just in tongue but in presence of mind! Yes, I think it's time for a revolution…