My response as a Christian to the legalization of gay marriage

Since the Supreme Court ruling, and even quite frankly before that, I’ve thought about what my response as a Christian should be to the legalization of gay marriage should be.

I am, of course,  disappointed by the ruling for several reasons including the fact that it is constitutionally wrong based on the 10th amendment; but I am not surprised by it.

My greatest concern at this time is that the result of this ruling will be a continued erosion of our first amendment liberties. I do think that the intent of some of those pushing this agenda is the destruction of the church by removing or limiting our religious liberty.

Please know that this is not the intent of everyone who believes that gay marriage is right, but I think it is the ultimate goal of many of those who lead this movement. I base that on my observation of what has happened to some business owners in states that already had gay marriage as well as what has happened in other countries where gay marriage exists. I think that many who support gay marriage are naïve about what the ultimate result will be. 


Given this, what should my response as a Christian be?

I need to remember to show love to those with whom I disagree. I know that this is sometimes difficult. I see a lot of anger in my friends on both sides of this issue, but I do believe that as a Christian, I need to be kind and loving even when I disagree. I don’t think though that showing love means I back away from the truth.

We need to stand firm for what God says in his Word is right. The Biblical view of marriage is between one man and one woman. That has not changed.

We must also support our pastors and our churches as they stand for what is right even if that leads to civil disobedience.

We need to keep up the fight politically to maintain our first amendment rights. One of my big fears about this ruling is that more Christians will back further away from the public square than they already have over the last eight or nine years. This is not the time to do that. In fact, I think part of the problems in our country politically are a result of Christians staying home and not voting.

I have been very frustrated by the lack of involvement of my fellow Christians in the public square. We need to be educated and involved in what is happening in our communities as well as on our national stage. While I understand that not everyone is the political geek that I am, I think Christians especially should consider it their duty not only to vote but to be educated and involved in government.

As I write this, we have just celebrated the 239th birthday of our country’s independence. I went to church last night, and we thanked God for our freedom in this country. Our founders, in spite of what is often taught these days, were men of faith. They created a country where people of faith could live in freedom. 

Our Constitution’s Preamble begins with “We the People…” Our form of government was unique. We had no king. The people would rule themselves. With that self-rule came a responsibility though. The responsibility of being educated and involved in our government. The founders did not intend for us to abdicate that responsibility. Indeed, they warned us what would happen if we did. 

Thomas Jefferson said, “If once the people become inattentive to the public affairs, you and I, and Congress and Assemblies, Judges and Governors, shall all become wolves. It seems to be the law of our general nature, in spite of individual exceptions.”

I believe that Christians have a particular responsibility in this area for several reasons. Romans 13 is often used to justify Christians not being involved in government. In this passage, we are told to obey those who rule over us. In our country, we do not have kings or rulers.

As many of you know,  I am a township trustee. One day recently, my son after accompanying me around town where I was talking to people, said to me, “Mom, you own this town.” While it was flattering to have my son say that, the truth is my town belongs to all the people who live there. I am a public servant entrusted to make decisions to govern the town,  and  I am bound by the will of the people and laws of the United States and the State of Ohio.

In our country, our “ruler” is the rule of law and the Constitution. That is the ruler that we are to obey. And when the public officials in our country don’t obey the Constitution, we are not under a Christian obligation to obey; and in fact, we have a responsibility to correct those officials by working to remove them.   

Micah 6:8 says “He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?”

Our country with its freedoms has become a “shining city on a hill” to those who seek justice and freedom. As American Christians, we have a unique responsibility to “do justly” or as some versions say “show justice” by maintaining that beacon of liberty for the world.  

I have Christian friends who believe that since we are living in the last days we should just give up worrying about this world at all. My response to that is that while we may very well be in the last days, we cannot know that for sure. We still have the responsibility as Christians to live in this world and “do justly.”  

I have had Christian friends who say that politics is all corrupt so we should completely stay away from it. To me that is all the more reason to get involved. We need to be a light in a dark world. What better way to be that light than to take the darkness head on.  

Ultimately, we as Christians need to be good stewards of what we have. As American Christians, we have a legacy of freedom, and it is our responsibility to maintain that. We do that by being involved in the public square.  

Remember the words of Ronald Reagan:

“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 down 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.”

Fearleass Girl Back with a Bang.

(This was originally published in the Tribune Chronicle July 31, 2012)
I believe in the Second Amendment, but I have a confession to make. I'm really not very experienced in actually shooting guns. There are several reasons for this.

First, I am uncoordinated. To put it bluntly, I'm a klutz. I am probably the only person in the history of the world who was in special ed gym without actually being in special ed.
When I was in elementary school, I would have to stumble down to the gym a couple of times a week and walk on the balance beam. It didn't help me much. I think I fell down the steps at my house once a week for my entire childhood. There is a reason I now live in a one-story house.
I'm also very near-sighted. Although my vision is improved with glasses, I have no depth perception. I'm just not very good at shooting even though I've tried several times.
One thing that I discovered a few years ago is that my dominant eye is my left eye, but I'm right handed. Being cross-eye dominant makes shooting more difficult and explains why I've never been able to shoot well.
This year, my son was given the opportunity to attend Christian Service Brigade camp. At this camp, a boy can concentrate on one activity. My son chose marksmanship.
I was a bit nervous, but Second Amendment mom won out over overprotective mom. I also couldn't resist that fact that he would spend a week clinging to his religion and guns (that's my boy). He returned home full of enthusiasm for shooting. His first words to me were, ''Mom, I want to save up for a .22.''
The day he came home, I received an invitation for a fundraiser for Nancy McArthur, who is running for the state senate in the 32nd District. It was supposed to be a day of target shooting. As soon as he found out, my son begged to go. I relented and promised him that we would.
Almost immediately, I regretted the promise. I was scared. I wasn't worried about my safety or the safety of others. I trust Nancy and knew that she would have professionals there who knew what they were doing and could deal with anything - even a klutz like me.
I was concerned, however, that I would look like a complete and total fool. A promise is a promise, however; and a promise made to one's child is sacred. I knew I had to face my fear and go. So I went, and I shot, and I had a blast.
Teezon Wong of Newbury in Geauga County ran the shoot. He and his staff were great. They knew I was a novice, and they took great care in instructing me and making me feel comfortable. I shot a .22 pistol, and actually hit the target. I can't wait to do it again.
Some nice man even paid for my son and me to shoot a couple of rounds with a Barrett .50-caliber. Now that was awesome. The best part of the day, however, was knowing that I faced my fear and overcame it.
You know that little girl that I was once upon a time may have been klutzy, but she was also pretty fearless and spunky. She was tiny, but afraid of nothing. She gave boys bloody noses and played tackle football. She took risks and didn't care what people thought about her.
Somewhere along the way, I lost her. Sure, she came out now and then, but over the years, I quit taking risks. I made lists and I planned and organized; and I played it safe and was content in my neat, safe, little life.
A few months ago, I found out the hard way that those plans and my neat, safe, little life could be gone with the wind in the time it took for a doctor to give his diagnosis. I became painfully aware about exactly how short life is, and how it can change in a blink of an eye. By losing my security, I realized that nothing really is secure. I may as well live my life fully, taking risks, being that fearless little girl again.
You know what? I like that little girl, and I'm glad she's back. I missed her, and quite frankly, these days, I need her.

Defend Our Culture of Freedom

(This is a column that was published September 11, 2012.)
Writing a column to be published on Sept. 11 is a daunting task. I wanted to write just the right words. I thought about all the things I could say about this day. One topic that stood out for me is what this day 11 years ago did to me personally and how it changed me.

To do that I need to first tell you a little story about something that happened to me recently. I have a friend who really irritated me. Actually, he went beyond irritation. I was pretty angry. I was to a point where I wasn't even sure I liked him anymore. I wasn't sure being his friend was worth the aggravation.
Then something strange happened. I was hanging out with some people who knew him. One of these people started talking disparagingly about my friend. I found myself becoming furious at this guy.
Who was he to talk about my friend this way? Doesn't he know how great my friend really is? Somewhere along the way, I realized that in spite of his faults, I care a great deal for my friend and respect and admire him.
Sept. 11 was like that for me as well. I wasn't irritated or angry with my country, but I was complacent. Growing up, I believed that my country was the greatest on earth, but somewhere along the way, I began to take her for granted.
When Sept. 11 happened, when someone attacked my country, I was angry. In my anger, just like when my friend was attacked, I realized exactly how great my country is. How exceptional she is.
When the terrorists attacked our country, they targeted symbols of what they didn't like about our country our prosperity, our rule of law, and our military. But the reason we are exceptional isn't because of those symbols.
When President Bush spoke to the nation after the attacks, he said, ''Freedom itself was attacked this morning by a faceless coward, and freedom will be defended.'' He hit the nail on the head about why we are exceptional - our freedom. Earlier this summer, Mitt Romney was criticized for daring to say that culture matters when it comes to prosperity. In particular, he talked about how a culture of freedom where free people engage in free enterprise creates an environment where a country prospers and people can be lifted out of poverty. He was right.
The Declaration of Independence set forth the idea that we are all endowed by our Creator with the freedom to pursue happiness. Our Constitution is unique in that instead of granting us rights, it restricts the government's infringement of our freedoms. It recognizes that, as Vice Presidential Candidate Paul Ryan said, ''Our rights come from God and nature not from government.'' Our founders created a culture of freedom where we were given political, economic and religious privileges. No other country had those freedoms. Our country has prospered because of them.
Gov. Romney was accused of being racist when he gave that speech in Israel. I don't really understand that charge. Culture isn't race. That culture of freedom he was talking about applies to anyone who believes in it and is willing to practice it.
The great thing about our country is that inheritance we have from our founding fathers is available to all of us. My ancestors fought in the Revolutionary War. I'm proud of that, but I'm no more an inheritor of the culture of freedom than my friends whose ancestors came here in the 20th Century.
That day, I felt renewed patriotism and love for my country. I became more thankful for the freedom that made us great, but I also became more protective of that freedom. I realized that it could be taken away in an instant.
More recently, I've discovered that the erosion of freedom can be more gradual. The last three and half years, I've seen changes in my country that frightened me more than the terrorists ever did. I've watched as the culture of freedom has started to change to a culture of dependence. I've heard the president tell me I didn't build my business and someone else is responsible for my success. I've seen religious liberty eroded. These things make me angry just like the terrorists did.
On Sept. 11, I would have signed up for the military had they wanted me. I wanted to defend my country. Today, I still want to defend my country. Now I want to defend it from those who want to change it. I want to speak up and say, ''Enough is enough! I want my country back!''
I want to work as hard as I can to make sure that we continue to have a culture of freedom where everyone can prosper, not a culture of dependency where no one prospers. I believe that there are still more people in this country who believe in that culture of freedom than in that culture of dependence. I believe that our country can still be that ''shining city on a hill.'' I encourage those who still believe that to stand with me and work with me to defend our country.

That's Just So Trumbull County

(This was my first column that I wrote for the Tribune Chronicle. It was originally published July 4, 2012.)

That's just so Trumbull County.

A friend of mine said that to me recently regarding a situation we both found humorous. Some things, however, that are ''just so Trumbull County'' are not as humorous.
Last Wednesday, I sat in a hallway outside a courtroom in Warren Municipal Court waiting for a hearing to start for Berry Meadows. Meadows was accused of felony theft by deception.
After almost an hour of waiting, Meadows' attorney announced to those of us gathered that the charge had been dismissed without prejudice, meaning that the charge can be re-filed if necessary. On Thursday, the same charge in Niles Municipal Court was dismissed.
Meadows is not some hardened criminal or con-artist. Meadows is a businessman who has had the temerity to speak against the Trumbull County Health Department.
The health department has created a situation in this county where only one of two sand filtration septic systems can be installed. Both systems are made by the same manufacturer.
Meadows, owner of Digging Dirt LLC., has a septic system that he believes would save homeowners $3,000 per installation and would produce a clean effluent. He and his wife started looking into how the health department works and soon saw things that raised questions. They made public records requests and posted the results on their Facebook page, Trumbull County Septic News. They attended meetings and confronted officials including Health Commissioner James Enyeart and posted videos of the meetings on Facebook.
One of the records requested showed the possibility that the sheriff's son may have gotten biased treatment for a non-compliant system.
The sheriff's office then brought a felony charge of theft by deception against Meadows. This charge was brought based on a civil claim and was in the process of being handled civilly. The sheriff said that he didn't initiate the criminal case but one of the plaintiffs, Angel Bennet, was quoted in the Tribune on May 30 as saying that she never called the Sheriff's office, but that ''They called me and asked if I could come in.''
The second charge in the Niles Municipal court was for a situation where a civil suit hadn't even been filed, and again in that situation the Sheriff's Department contacted the homeowner.
Although the charges have been dismissed, the Meadows family has endured humiliation and financial loss.
So, now, what do we do with this? Some folks would say it is better to just keep our mouths shut - that we can't change anything anyway so we should just give up. This is Trumbull County, after all, and that is just how it is.
Those folks are wrong. The shenanigans in this county are robbing us of our freedom. Ronald Reagan once said, ''Freedom is a fragile thing and is never more than one generation away from extinction. It is not ours by inheritance; it must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation.''
It was 236 years ago when the Declaration of Independence was signed. Those men who signed that document pledged their lives, their fortunes and their honor to declare our nation's independence. They didn't do that so that all these years later our community would be cowering in fear of retaliation by a small group of bureaucrats.
As the Declaration of Independence was signed, Benjamin Franklin is supposed to have said, '''If we don't all hang together, then surely, we shall all hang separately.'' We should heed those words today.
As individuals, we can be intimidated and silenced, but if we ''hang together'' and work together to fight the corruption in this county, it will become more difficult for them to silence us.
Over the last few years, I've realized that I have a choice. I can stay on my own little two acres in Farmington and watch my freedom being taken away bit by bit. I can hope that somehow things in this county get better - that somebody does something - or I can be one of those somebodies. I can join Berry and Deanna Meadows and try to make a difference.
I choose to make a difference. Who's with me?

Mother's Day

Mother’s Day has always been a little strange for me.

As a child, it was kind of sad for me.  My own mother was paranoid schizophrenic and was institutionalized when I was ten.  I really have no memory of her being a “real mom” to me.  When Mother’s Day came around at church, it was painful for me to hear people talk about their moms and know that I didn’t have that.  I grew to really dislike the day. 

Then I got married, and I looked forward to being a mom.  I think as a young woman, my greatest desire was to have a large family.  That did not happen.  So I kept disliking the day.  I’ve read a few blogs recently about childless women feeling so left out when they have the moms stand at church.  I get that. 

Finally in 1999, we were able to adopt Jack.  He truly was worth the wait.  God gave me the desire of my heart. I remember how blessed I felt to take care of him and how the love I felt for him healed me of the hurt in my heart at not having my mom there.  Today, he is such a blessing to me as our little family struggles with my husband’s illness.  While he is certainly not a perfect child (He IS a teenager), he has a good heart, and I know that my road would be harder if he weren’t the young man he is.  

I will never forget my first Mother’s Day.  We traveled to Colorado to visit my Aunt Cecile and attend my cousin Patty’s college graduation.  I spent a lot of time that day with my aunt.  She told me so much about my own mother and how she was before she became ill.  She gave me my mom’s baptismal certificate as well as some pictures.  I am still so grateful for her and the time she took to introduce me to my mom-to the person she was before the illness took that away. 

As I look back over my childhood now, I realize that while I didn’t have my mom, I did have many other women who helped me become the person I am today.  I was truly blessed to have these women in my life.  I have tried as an adult to do that for others as well-to pay it forward.  My son tells me I’m everyone’s mom.  A friend tells me I’m a mother hen.  So maybe I didn’t get my large family the way I planned, but I guess God had other plans for me.  Funny how that works, the plans God has for us are always better than our own even when we can’t see it.

God Bless my friends on Mother’s Day whether you have a large brood or, like me, have never given birth and just mother the ones in your life who need it.    

RINO's.....

RINO…..I think I’m getting a little tired of that word.  Not that RINO’s don’t exist.  I believe that they do, but I think sometimes those of us who tend to be to the far right in the political spectrum that is the Republican Party apply that term to anyone who we deem less conservative than we are.

Most recently, I’ve heard the term applied to my own Congressman Dave Joyce by those who back his challenger in the primary in May.  I think that this is an unfair characterization of Congressman Joyce. 

Before I proceed to tell you why, let me explain that I have supported both men in the past.  In 2012 although I don’t live in State Representative Matt Lynch’s district, I did give him some assistance in his campaign. I grew up in Troy Township which is part of his district, and my home now is close to the line of his district.  I would let his campaign know when there were events in his district that he could attend.  I also encouraged my friends in his district to vote for him. I have appreciated his standing for conservative principles while in the General Assembly and even considered him my “adopted” State Rep since my current State Representative does not represent me very well. 

As for Congressman Joyce, in 2012 former Congressman Steve LaTourette stepped out of the race; and the Chairmen and Secretaries of the County Republican Parties in his district picked Dave Joyce to be the Republican candidate for the Ohio 14^th District.  I volunteered for his campaign and helped out wherever I could. 

Since his election, while there have been a few times I haven’t agreed with him, I’ve grown to respect him and to especially respect the fact that he has the heart of a true public servant. 

The name RINO has been applied to Congressman Joyce unfairly.  On the most important and most visible issue of our time, ObamaCare, the Congressman has voted every chance he could to repeal, defund, delay, or fix it every chance he has had. 

Congressman Joyce is a fiscal conservative who practices what he preaches. He returned $100,000 of his own office budget back to the treasurer. This is something he also did every year when he was the Geauga County Prosecutor for 24 years.  Congressman Joyce introduced a bill – THE SAVE ACT - that would cut $200 billion in government waste and duplicative programs.

Those of us who are concerned about how the Constitution seems to be ignored by our current President should take note that Congressman Joyce recently signed on as a sponsor of the STOP (Stop This Overreaching Presidency) Act, which holds Obama accountable for his Executive Overreach as well as bills to hold the IRS accountable and demand answers from the tragedy in Benghazi.

Congressman Joyce is pro-life, pro-family, and pro-gun. 

That doesn’t sound like a RINO to me.

He may not be quite as conservative as his primary opponent or me for that matter, but he is conservative. 

Some have tried to tie him to his predecessor, Steve LaTourette, and have made a great deal about the fact that he is a member of the moderate Republican organization headed up by LaTourette, Main Street Partnership.  While it is true that Congressman Joyce joined this organization when he was elected, so have several other congressmen who are considered conservative including Congressman Bill Johnson in the 6^th District.  Also Congressman Joyce joined the Republican Study Committee which is a conservative organization.  He wanted to get a full picture of the Republicans in the House.  

Joining an organization, any organization, does not mean you automatically agree with every stance they take.  Main Street Partnership pushed for a “clean” debt ceiling bill, but Congressman Joyce voted against that because it had no spending reductions.  

While I don’t agree completely with Congressman Joyce on everything, I do agree with most of what he has done and don’t believe he is a RINO by any stretch of the imagination.

I’m supporting Congressman Joyce in this primary in part because I believe it is best to vote for the most conservative candidate that can win. I honestly don’t believe that Matt Lynch can win the general election in this district. I don’t want to see a liberal Democrat win that seat. Prior to redistricting, I was in Democrat Tim Ryan’s district. I know what it is like to be represented by a liberal Democrat. I would rather have a Congressman that I agree with 80% or 90% of the time than one that I agree with 5% of the time.

But don’t think that because I cite that practical reason that I will consider Congressman Joyce the lesser of two evils in November.  I have tremendous admiration for the man that Congressman Joyce is.

As I said before, over the last year and a half I’ve grown to respect him as a man who has the heart of a public servant.  When Congress is not in session, he is in the district speaking to his constituents, finding out what they think.  He takes the time to get into the far reaches of the district.  Heck, he actually knows where Farmington is. 

In December, he participated in the swearing in ceremony that we had for several of the township trustees in the area.  He spoke from his heart when talking about his own attitude toward being a public servant. 

I know that he truly gets what many in elected office don’t -we are supposed to be servants of the people not rulers over them.

Congressman Joyce may not be a rock star, but he is a good man working hard to serve all of the people in his district.  For that, he has my vote and my support.

Fight Back Fundraiser Speech

Good afternoon.  I want to speak to you today on what makes a good citizen.  There are two different areas where we can demonstrate good citizenship.  Both are important , but I will spend most of my time today on the second. 

The first area is community involvement.  I think this is best summed up as  loving your neighbor.  All of us should be involved to some degree with making our communities better places to live.  This can range from literally helping out those who live next door when they are down on their luck to being involved in the churches and private organizations that help others and improve our communities.  I know that we have a mixed crowd here politically, but most people who know me or read my column know that I’m a conservative.  As a conservative, I believe in limited government.  I think that we as citizens have abdicated our responsibilities of caring for the poor and improving our communities to the government when it  is not the government’s job.  Government is a poor substitute for human beings helping other human beings.  We need to remember that and see community involvement as  part of being a good citizen. 

The other area of good citizenship is being involved in the public square. I think most people, if they think about being a good citizen at all, think they are doing their duty just by voting.  I thought this way for a long time.  I realize now though that good citizenship is much more than voting.  

We all know the preamble of the Constitution.  It doesn’t say, "We the government."  It doesn’t say, "We the media."  It says, "We the People. "  Our founders created a system of self government, but they intended for us to be active informed participants in that government.  We have instead become ignorant passive spectators.    I wrote  a  column recently about tyranny.  One of the commenters online said that any thinking person knows that tyranny and self governance are mutually exclusive.  That commenter is missing the point.  Self governance only works to prevent tyranny if the citizens remain informed and active.  Trumbull County is evidence of that.

 We have a health department that targets people for daring to question them.

We have the malicious ineptitude of a children’s services board (aided by commissioners who, realizing that foster children don’t vote, look the other way). 

Some of our townships are seeing their land bought up by the state of Ohio to a point where they struggle to  provide basic services to their residents.

 We are bound by a consent decree that has created septic rules in our county that are punitive and the strictest in our state.  No elected official has lifted a finger to try to get us out from under this decree. 

So what do we do?  Some look at the mess we’re in and say it is too late.  We can’t fix this.  Not enough people care.  I don’t believe that.  In the year that I’ve been writing my column, I’ve gotten to know Trumbull County much better.  While I’ve held a magnifying glass to its faults and seen those more clearly than I ever have or really ever wanted to, I’ve also seen the people here more clearly than I ever have.   When I spoke at the last fundraiser, I said that I love this county.  Seven months later, I think I love it now even more as I have met so many good decent people who are working to make this a better place to live.

But how do we do fix this?  I think we start by being the kind of citizens our founders intended.  We must educate ourselves as to what is happening locally.  Every person should know who his or her elected officials are-what they are doing right, what they are doing wrong.  Go to trustee or council meetings.  Know the issues that are facing your community.

Last year, I was speaking to someone about how people didn’t know who their state representative was.  He said, “People just don’t care.”  I replied, “I will make them care.”

I like to think that my column has done that maybe even for some of you. I can’t do it alone.  We all must work to make others care. Each of us has a circle of influence-people we can talk to and encourage to get involved and to become good citizens. 

Jefferson said, “if once the people become inattentive to the public affairs, you and I, and Congress and assemblies, judges and governors, shall become as wolves.”  We sure do have a lot of wolves here in Trumbull County.  We need an army of people willing to become good citizens, willing to influence others and get them involved.  We need people willing to run for office who want to be public servants.  Only then will we drive out the wolves and fix this county.