Why I Do Politics

Sometimes I wonder why I do politics. Why am I involved? Is it for the right reasons?

Over the last two years or so, I have been very involved in politics. I have been involved at all different levels within my state party. Most of the involvement has been at the local level, in my county. I worked on a state senate campaign and helped with some local races. Currently, I am in a leadership training group that trains women to be public servants.

I am involved in all of these things for a reason. I do not do anything without a purpose. But at times over the last year, when I have been exhausted or just not sure why I am doing politics, I question the reason.

Am I doing it for myself? Am I doing it for fun? Am I doing it to make an impact, to make a difference in the world? Am I doing it for the next generation, so that they have a great country to live in? Is it because I have certain issues that drive me? Or is it more than that? These are some of the questions that have plagued me. While the answer to some of these may be yes, there is another reason why I ultimately am involved and will stay involved.

I do want to make a difference. I do want to help the next generation thrive. I do have certain issues that drive me in to politics. And yes, I even do it for fun and for myself. But this weekend I realized that the real reason why I do politics, is completely different from why others do politics. My reason for doing politics, is my reason for doing anything and everything else - I want to do all I do for God's glory.

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. 1 Corinthians 10:31 NIV84

Over this weekend, I realized what I knew all along. I have been doing it for God's glory. I have been trying to shine His light. I know that there have been times when I have failed to give God the glory and praise in what I have done through politics, but I also know where my heart is. My heart is to do God's will. I believe He has called me to be involved and He has blessed my efforts. He has also blessed me by putting others in my path that do politics for the same reason as me. And I believe He has called me to be a light, in a place that can sometimes be very dark.

In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:16 NIV84

I appreciate those of you who have gotten involved in politics. But more so, I appreciate those of you who have answered God's call in your life - no matter what that may be.

In all you do, I pray you will be a light for Him! Go out and make an impact in the world - for Christ!


For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,”made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. 2 Corinthians 4:6 NIV84

Collections

We all have collections. Some people have small collections and some have rather large collections. My family happens to be a family that likes to collect. While people always come first in our lives, we do have our share of "things" and collections. My grandparents came from the generation that never got rid of things because, well, "you never know when you might need it"! To some extent, I think I may have inherited this as well. I like my collections and I like to see other people's collections. It can also be fun to add to yours or another person's collections. Collections tell stories!

My love of collections probably comes from when I was very young. When I was a little girl, I often went shopping and antiquing with my grandma and mom. I would get to help my mom and grandma look for pieces of their collections. It might have been a new cameo for my grandma's collection of those pretty pieces of jewelry. It might have been looking for another piece to my mom's dish set. Or it may have simply been the adventure of being together with three generations of family and the memories that came from those times.

Or it may have been the collections that were started for me. The Noah's Ark pieces that decorated my room from when I was little. The little mugs that were brought home to me from trips people went on. The books I have. And on and on...

But of all of the collections I have, the one I would like to share right now is my key-chain collection. Collecting key-chains started from a collection that my brother had. He had started collecting them and had a quite a few. I liked the idea and started my own collection many years ago. Since then I have collected quite a few. I have gotten them from different places that I have traveled, from other people that have brought me souvenirs, and some from conventions, booths, and fairs. I love getting a new key-chain and the memory that comes with it. And I would love to share them with you! Each week, I am going to try and share one or two key-chains with you. Hope you enjoy!

"Celebrate who you are"

My most recently acquired key-chain! I got this on December 31, 2012. Every New Year's Eve, we do a white elephant game and this was one of the prizes I won from the game!

Resolutions - check up

Today is a snow day where I live, during the night we received rain, freezing rain, and tonight we are supposed to get snow. On top of the snow we already have! 

So as I sit back and think, I wanted to check up on my resolutions. These are the ones I shared with you at the beginning of the year and now that is is almost two weeks later, I thought I would check up on them!

• Read more (fiction and classics) - I have read two books and am starting my 3rd and 4th books today... Also joined Goodreads as a way to keep track of the books I am reading.
• Memorize Scripture - As to this goal, I have made a chart for this and I plan to start memorizing 1 Cor. 13 on Feb. 1st.
• Read my Bible and do a Bible study - I am currently reading a devotional by Laura Story.
• Try one new thing each month - Not yet this month!
• Pay off my college debt - Getting there.
• Complete MEPS - This is a year-long program, I am almost halfway through!
• Continue to be politically active - With the Congress and my state's legislature getting back underway, I have been staying up-to-date. Plus, looking for what ways I am supposed to be involved.
• Journal (prayer journal) - So far about weekly.
• Blog (weekly?) - Well, you may have to be the judge of this!

Already 11 days into the next year and I know that some of my resolutions will need some adjustments and I am okay with that. I want to be able to "go-with-the-flow" and yet still have some general goals/resolutions.

How are your resolutions or New Year's goal going? Are you staying on top of them, or do you need to make some changes? Be willing to make some changes on a must-need basis and be willing to let God use you this year. Strive for your goals, but in the end, let your life glorify God.

2013... Looking Forward

Goals / Resolutions for the New Year

A couple days before 2013 started, I had some time to thing about the coming year and the resolutions I would like to make. I was inspired to create some new goals since last year's didn't go as planned and I couldn't even tell you what they were (except for finishing college, which I did). My inspiration came from two CollegePlus blog posts that I read and could really relate to. The first was called What I Learned About Setting Goals and the second was called The Six Steps I Took to Setting Goals and I would highly recommend you reading them!

Here are some of my goals/resolutions for 2013:

• Read more (fiction and classics)
• Memorize Scripture
• Read my Bible and do a Bible study
• Try one new thing each month 
• Pay off my college debt
• Complete MEPS
• Continue to be politically active
• Journal (prayer journal)

These are a few of the goals I have for this year. Most of the other goals fit somewhere inside of these. I have also tried to make these goals as specific as I can. For example, I have written down the list of books I would like to read and when I want to read them. I have made a calendar specifically for my goals. While I have done all this, I still want to make sure that I am willing to let go of these dreams, goals, resolutions, in order for God's Will to be done. I am open for changes and adjustments in my plan. Last year when there was changes, I let my resolutions go, too. This year, I will be open to let these goals change or get adjusted instead of just letting them just vanish.

Also, I want to remember to continue to live my Life Purpose that I wrote a few years ago.

I want to live my life in a way that will always glorify God. I want to develop a heart that says, “Here I am, Lord, send me” (Isaiah 6:1-6). I want to make the most of every day, living like it is my last. I know I have been put here for a purpose (Esther 4:14) and I want to fulfill my purpose, even if I do not always know what God wants me to do. I want to trust Him (Proverbs 3:5-6). I want to live "By Faith" (Hebrews 11) and "Do Hard Things". I want to have an attitude of "It's all about God and not all about me". I am striving to follow the example of 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 in my daily life. Ultimately, I want to learn that God knows the whole picture and that He will guide me through everything, even if I do not understand it (Jeremiah 29:11). I want to live in such a way that my life reflects Christ, so I can be a witness for Him. I want to influence children, girls, and women of all ages. I would like to inspire the next generation to be bold for God and to be able to step out on their own faith in Christ. I will do this, first, by reminding them of 1 Timothy 4:12. I will also do this through JOY blog, internet resources, my writing, and through disciplining and teaching others to live for Jesus Christ. I also want to show God’s Biblical Truths to others and expose the lies of the enemy. “So whether [I] eat or drink or whatever [I] do, [I want to] do it all for the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31)

Happy New Year to all my Readers!

2012…Looking Back

2012...Looking Back

Part 1

Titles From The Year:

Graduate: Finished CollegePlus and Graduated from Thomas Edison State College with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Communication.

Intern: Interned at the State Capitol in Senate.

Campaign Assistant: Helped run a state senate campaign – And the candidate won!

IT Director: Worked on a few different Facebook pages and groups, joined Twitter, and ran a website.

Parade Walker: Walked in 25 parades this summer and went to 6+ County fairs and festivals (while campaigning).

Auntie: This summer, I became an Auntie for the 12^th time! 12 nieces and nephews!

Granddaughter: Also, this summer, my last grandparent went to be with Jesus. I will always miss all four of my grandparents.

Vacationer: Went on a mini-vacation to visit a friend from my childhood after not seeing each other much over the past few years! And went on a family vacation to Texas!

Daughter/Sister: In March, my sister and I attended a Father Daughter Ball with our Dad. My mom and I also got to attend some conventions together and spend time together.

Secretary: For a local group I am involved in.

Blogger: Continuing to blog here on Musings - http://musingsmadebymandy.blogspot.com/

Reader: Now that I have finished school, I am back to reading the books I haven't had time to read in the last couple of years!

Friend: I have met many new people over the last year! Happy to be able to call them friends.

Nanny: For two of my nieces and one of my nephews.

Christ Follower: As I look at this area of my life, this is what is most important to me. In all I do, I want to serve God. But when I look back over the last year, I did not strive to make this the most important. While I felt God was calling to each of these other things and I was able to use them as my ministry, I still feel like I needed to put more importance on Him. He was faithful to me throughout the year and I felt Him with me. As I go into the next year, I want Him to be first and foremost in everything I do, in every decision I make.

“So whether [I] eat or drink or whatever [I] do, [I want to] do it all for the glory of God.” 

(1 Corinthians 10:31)

Last Ounce Of Courage

Last night I watched the movie, Last Ounce of Courage. 

Here is part of the description: (The rest is in the link)

"When Christian is threatened with school suspension for bringing his bible to school, Bob notices that his country is headed in a dangerous direction and that freedom itself is on the line. Encouraged by his grandson Christian, who asks "what did his father die for?", Bob finally takes a stand for his beliefs and finds himself jailed for putting up the town's Christmas tree and refusing to take it down. In this beautiful story of love and forgiveness, they discover a way to unite and to make a difference in their community by claiming their freedom and standing up for their rights." 

The movie was very good and made a lot of good points about freedom, making an impact on the next generation, and standing up for what we believe in and in what is right. But some of my favorite parts were the two Reagan quotes in the movie. One was at the beginning and one was at the end.

The quote at the beginning:

“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.”
― Ronald Reagan

The quote at the ending:

"You and I have a rendezvous with destiny. We will preserve for our children this, the last best hope of man on earth, or we will sentence them to take the first step into a thousand years of darkness. If we fail, at least let our children and our children's children say of us we justified our brief moment here. We did all that could be done in the one moment allotted us here on earth."
-Ronald Reagan

In all that we do, we impact the next generation. What are you doing today that will make a positive impact on next generation?

Just Call Me Scarlett...

Just the other day, I made the comment to my mom, "Just call me Scarlett," after I had quoted the famous Scarlett O'Hara from "Gone With The Wind". We laughed and then I said I didn't have a red dress. Over the years, I have watched the movie, "Gone With The Wind". I first borrowed the movie on VHS from my grandmother and it took me days to watch the whole movie. But after that first time, I have watched the movie about once-a-year. And I have now bought my own copy on DVD.

Scarlett O'Hara on the cover of my DVD

I am not sure why I like the movie, every time after I finish watching it, I am angered by Scarlett. I think it is a movie I both love and hate. I like it because it is a classic, it tells a good story, but yet it annoys me because Scarlett never realizes who truly loved her and who she loved until it is too late. Maybe...it reminds me that we should treasure those we have around us and that make sure we let them know we love them...

My old edition of the book "Gone With The Wind"

 Whether I like the whole movie or not, there are a couple quotes that I like to use from the movie. This is what lead my mom to teasing me about being Scarlett. Below is a picture of Scarlett and the quotes I use...

 "I can't think about that right now. If I do, I'll go crazy. I'll think about that tomorrow".

and

"After all... tomorrow is another day". 

-Scarlett O'Hara

 

Scarlett on the cover of my book "Scarlett"

 Why do I quote Scarlett? Sometimes I wonder! Most of the time when I use the first quote that I mentioned it is because I don't want to deal with something at the moment. It is not my way of ignoring the issue or avoiding the problem, but instead it is my way of making light of the issue and remembering that I can focus on something else and then come back to the issue at hand. Sometimes things need to rest before we make decisions.

The second quote? Each day is a blessing and I need constant reminding of this fact. When I think of tomorrow, I think of a new day, a new beginning, another blessing.

Me in my Red Dress

For Christmas, I received a red dress. I love the color red and it was a special gift to me. I wore the dress on the Sunday before Christmas and the picture above is of me wearing it. Both of those quotes do have meaning for me...but mostly I use them for fun. They put a smile on my face. So while I don't strive to be like Scarlett, we can still learn lessons from her. One more lesson that I think of is that we can choose new beginning. Christ offers new life if we trust in Him. Scarlett was always able to pick herself up and start again and look for the hope of a new day. While it seems that she never found it, we have a Hope. In Christ, we have a real opportunity to find Hope and Faith, but only through Jesus. I want to live my life in a way that will always give glory to God. And I want to be able to see the blessings He gives me. And I want to live each day believing in that Hope and Faith.

So call me Scarlett...