I am not a fan of politics so the couple of months leading up to the presidential election often frustrate me.  I am a strong proponent of exercising your right to vote so believe I need to be educated.  I just cannot handle listening to everything that is broadcast on the news.  I have great concerns over this election.  As a Christian, I believe I am called to pray for our country and for this election.  Any way you look at it this election will make history.  Prayers of believers are essential during this time.  We know God is ultimately in control regardless of the result, but I believe we still have an obligation to pray and to vote for the candidate who most closely represents our ideals.  I see a shift in our country towards intolerance particularly intolerance of Christian conservative viewpoints.  I believe the majority of the country wants to see change come about.  This change should not include restricting our freedoms.  I am not sure if I have a doom and gloom mentality or if there really is a valid reason to have concerns about losing freedoms.  My biggest concern is the freedom of speech.  We were founded on the right to freedom, the freedom to believe what we want to believe, live the way we want to live, say what we want to say.  I believe those freedoms have the potential to be limited depending on how the election turns out. 

It is very easy to get apathetic about the issues we see in the country because it is so easy to feel like our opinions are not heard.  The politicians are paid off by lobbyists who have their own best interests in mind not ours.  What can we do to make a difference?  I am hearing a lot of people express that they are dissatisfied with the "big government" philosophies.  I don't know what to do to make a difference.  I am not the activist type.  I will certainly pray for our country, for our leaders, for the leaders to be elected in November and for God to show me if and how I should get involved in any issues.

Please join me in prayer for our country!

This week Payton attending a music and drama camp at my parents' church.  The week ended with a performance tonight (Friday).  Payton loved the week.  She enjoyed the other kids, the music, the drama, and the idea of performing on stage.  I was a little worried that she might be too young but the age requirement was 6 years old or finished with kindergarten.  She qualified.

I wasn't really sure what to expect from her during the musical tonight.  She knew most of the words to the songs and had been practicing the words and the motions at home.  Everything started off really well.  She was right there with them on the words and the motions.  During scene 2, she was part of a group of cheerleaders who were front and center.  She really looked like she enjoyed that.  It wasn't too many scenes later that her attention span left her.  Instead of participating in the songs and motions, she was talking and messing with a couple of other girls.  This continued throughout the rest of the program.  UGHHH! 

You know what really made me say UGHHH though?  My reaction to her behavior.  I actually found myself getting sweaty and really wanting to go up there and remove her from the stage.  I was actually embarassed.  I wasn't embarassed for her.  I was honestly embarassed for me.  What are other people thinking of my kid and what are they thinking of me?  I was totally thinking of performance instead of thinking about her age and what I really should be expecting of her.  I should not expect her to be perfect - no one is.  I should not expect a 6 year old to make it through an hour and a half performance without getting distracted, etc, etc, etc.  I should simply expect her to enjoy herself, be respectful, show kindness to others, learn more about God, etc.  It really isn't about the performance.  It's about the heart.  What a lesson for me.

 

Tomorrow I get to go to the doc's office for the second time in 3 weeks.  I have had a constant headache in the back of my head for over a month.  I went to the doc and saw the new nurse practitioner in the office and got some meds.  Well, guess what?  They didn't work!  I don't like to take meds so I use them sparingly anyway so when I do feel bad enough to take something, I want it to work.  I can live with a constant mild headache but when it goes to moderate/severe I need help.  I have tried all of the over the counter remedies - no luck.  I called the doc's office back last week, and they called in a different med.  It didn't work either, UGHHH!  So I called today to let them know and of course, they want to see me.  Normally I do not mind seeing a nurse practitioner at all (they usually have the time to be more thorough), but the new one doesn't know me so it makes it a bit more difficult.  I've been going to the same doc for at least the last 8 years so I am used to the familiarity even with the nurse practitioner that has been around a while.  I pray they will find out what is causing the headaches and will offer a solution.  Brad is convinced it has something to do with the way a sleep (very unusual position) while I am begining to wonder if it is something more serious.  It's probably not because I have no other symptoms, but you know how it goes.......