Government is like a fire...

Government is like a fire. Fire can be a good thing. Fire can keep you warm at night, it can cook food, it can ward of predators, and so on. However, fire can grow out of control to become a destructive force that burns homes, forest, and destroy life. Fire is a power that must be controlled in order for it to be enjoyed. In much the same way, Government is like a fire. Government can protect our freedoms, it can protect us from aggressive countries, it can produce infrastructure for commerce, and so on. As well, Government can grow out of control to become a destructive force that over taxes, removes freedom, crushes commerce, and so on. Let us look at the similarities more closely.

What is fire. Fire is not a cause but on a effect. Fire is a product of energy being release from a fuel. Fire cannot exist without fuel. Fire is nothing in and of itself. The founding fathers of this country understood that government exist in much the same way. Government is nothing in and of itself. It a product of the power created when a group of people come together for a cause (freedom). They saw that the origins of this power come from a creator who had given this power (rights) to each person . These rights were not given by man or government but by God. 

Some where along the way we have lost the that our rights come from God our creator, not government. Government exist because of these rights. Our rights do not exist because of government. Because of this switch americans have turned their faith to government not God. The fire that is government has grown out of control. The people who lead our government think that our rights exist because of their work not God's. And we are all to blame for this because God gave those rights and power to us and we have given them over to our government. We have little interest in the decisions our elected officials make, with that power, until something major comes up or it is election time. 

So how do we take the power back. The same way you stop a fire. There are two things essential to fire fighting: fire suppression and removal of the fuel. The government is not going to change over night. We will have to work to take control back. The best way to suppress the fire is to write our representative, and let them know what you think about certain issues and their possible solutions. In order to do that you will have to inform yourself of the problems, issues, and possible solutions. Starting at the bottom, much like a fire fighter putting water on a fire, is the most effective way to take control. You have to become involved in local and state issues. You will have a greater impact on local and state issues because you can drive down the road and see your local and state representatives and your local and state representatives answer to a smaller number of people. It takes time and effort but true change comes from the bottom up. Now that we are suppressing the fire we need to start removing the fuel. 

What fuels a government, money and power. So how do we take it away: tax reform and term limits. The tax system is used to control people, from individuals to large corporations, through incentives and penalties. We need a tax system that gives transparency to the system and that everyone is invested in. Right now close to 40% of american don't even pay tax. So they don't think what happens with our tax code affects them. We can accomplish this goals through plans like H.R. 25 The FairTax Act (personal favorite) or  H.R. 1040 The Freedom Flat Tax Act. Both solutions provide transparency to the system and prevent government from using the tax code to manipulate any one group of people, any changes would be applied to everyone. Once we remove the money, we have to take back the power. We must put term limits on elected officials. Don't give them time to become fixtures in the Washington political scene. Our founding fathers never intend for the american government to create a political class. We don't have time today to discuss the role the founding fathers saw for representative, but the representative were suppose to spend most of the year in the state they represented. However, the size of our government has moved our political representatives to Washington and away from the states they represent. The only way to keep them grounded and connected to the state they represent is to limit their stay in Washington.

The first step in all of this is to place your faith and trust in Jesus Christ our Lord. God is the one in control. God is the giver of all power and authority on earth. God is the only one who can promise to provide all your needs and keep that promise. With God we have a prefect representative in Christ Jesus. Walk daily with Him and he will guide your path.

Check out www.FairTax.org or www.americansolutions.com for more information on alternative tax solutions, as wells as, other solutions to governmental problems.

Obama Wins!

So last night Obama won, and from what I can tell the world has yet to come to an end. Don't get me wrong, I think Obama's socialist views are very dangerous, but I think today we have to celebrate the positive and take hope in the future knowing that God is in control. There are two positive things that have come out of this election for America. First, we have our first black president and that is a great accomplishment for our country. Let us hope that this will help our country to move past racism. (Don't let our response to Obama's election hinder that.) Secondly, we have more people involved in the election process, 130 million voters which is 65% of registered voters, a new record. I hear everyone saying, "Yeah, look who they chose!!". Yes, but for the first time these people we see the consequences of THEIR choices. These people will watch their jobs continue to go away despite the many promises. The economy will continue down the same rocky road. THIS CONTRY IS OVER DUE FOR A CORRECTION!!!! And they will have ownership in it, and that is a good thing. 

If you don't prefer Obama's flavor of government, take heart, one man cannot make or break a country, only God can. Our hope for tomorrow should come from our faith in God not the president. There should be no fear for those who trust in God. Obama is the man God chose. (Romans 13:1) That may be a tough pill to swallow, but you know it is true. Like so many things in our life, we are better off not trying to figure out why. I have my theories, but His ways are not my ways. (Isaiah 55:8-9) So what do we do? We do what we should be doing regardless of who the president is. We pray for Obama. We respect Obama. We honor Obama. (Romans 13:7) We can disagree, and we should. We can fight for what we believe, even though so often we don't. (And maybe that is a bigger problem than the president) If we want to take vested interest in our country, it takes for than voting every two years. But that is a whole other discussion for another day. So we move forward with life, and maybe there is a third positive outcome from this election. We are remind that our hope is not in America; our hope is in God.