As one year has reached its climax and concluded another has begun its journey toward completion.  In the Book of Ecclesiastes Chapter 3 we are told that there is a time and a season for everything including birth and death, planting and gathering, killing and healing, tearing down and building up, weeping and laughing, mourning and dancing, etc.  The list is quite extensive, but the reality is life is cyclical and seasonal.

I believe that one of our problems today is that we often fail to grasp that reality and view whatever is happening at the moment the finale rather than simply one of the many acts in the play.  No, I do not take lightly the events of life, but I have learned in my numerous decades on planet earth that until we draw our final breath nothing is final, and everything is subject to change.  Tragically, in various areas of life, we have allowed some to hijack the JOY OF LIFE through deception, false information, and hysteria.  That is especially true in the political and the rhetoric of various activist have robbed many of the JOY OF LIFE and LIVING.  I consider that a slap in the face of intelligence and a rejection of God Himself.  You may disagree but if there is a time for everything and life has seasons, my argument should resonate with you.

The matter of Climate Change, Global Warming, or Climate Disruption where the basic tenet is that man is the culprit for the changes in weather conditions and patterns is not based on true scientific data but is a hypothesis and theory.  It is not settled science as Al Gore, Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and others have declared.  There are numerous scientist who adamantly disagree with the theory that man is the culprit and that natural changes, which are cyclical are the answer.  However, many of those who do not believe in the theory that man is the problem believe there is no clear answer to why or how those changes occur.  Something or someone beyond their ability to fully comprehend or define is the driving force.  Global Warming takes a dramatic hit ever so often as this year in Erie, Pennsylvania where they have received over 8’ of snow since Christmas Eve.  I remember growing up in East Texas and seeing winters where you could wear shorts year-round and winters where the temperature plunged to sub-zero.  I’ve seen snow and ice that destroyed power lines and left communities in the dark for days and seen times when there was no snow or ice.  The hysteria has caused some to despair of life because they now believe that they (mankind) are the problem and some have taken their own lives as a result.  THAT IS TRAGIC!

If we consider the political scene in America, we find that we experience a time of liberals in power and a time of conservatives occupying that seat and the mood of the voting public changes from time to time.  The tragedy in the American Political Environment is that those seeking office and power are far less concerned about America and Americans than they are about Power, Position, and Purse.  I am reminded of the Jewish Sanhedrin in the Bible concerning Jesus expressed their real focus.  It was not the betterment of the people or the advancement of God’s Purposes but POSITION.  They said in John 11 after Jesus had raised Lazarus from the dead and worked other miracles, “What are we doing? For this man is performing many signs.  If we let Him go on like this, all men will believe in Him, and the Romans will come AND TAKE AWAY BOTH OUR PLACE AND OUR NATION.”  (Emphasis mine) Their concern is similar to that of today’s Political Establishment and Swamp Denizens in Washington, D.C. – POSITION and POWER not America or the American People.  The sad reality is that the Power brokers of both major political parties are like peas in a pod and that is one of the reasons they hate and fear Donald Trump.  He represents the potential of dismantling or seriously limiting their POWER and POSITION and that is far more important to them than the Constitution or the American Republic.  We, in their view, are their serfs and subject to their wishes.  We, in their minds, are to serve them not them serve the public.  Although the Political is cyclical we are observing a slow but steady erosion of Liberty and Freedom and with each cyclical change from Liberal to Conservative we get more of the Liberal Leftist ideology and less of the Conservative Constitutional.  THEREFORE, we must, not should, dismantle the Deep State, Drain the Swamp, and assist many of the professional politicians in D.C. to find new employment.  THAT is one of my 2018 Objectives!

There are few constants in life.  Virtually nothing remains the same.  Relationships decay and die if they are not nurtured and developed continually.  Businesses fail if there is not continual labor to adapt to the changing times and recognize the cycle or season coming next.  Republics fall when apathy becomes more prevalent than diligence and active involvement by the masses in the politics of that nation.  Regardless of who first declared, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing,” it is TRUE. 

As I look back on 2017 and ahead to 2018 I am grateful that America united sufficiently to defeat the extension of the policies of Barack Obama in the person of Hillary Clinton.  I believe we are in a cycle of opportunity and change that can lead us into a very productive 2018 and accomplish much in the way of restoration of America as the Constitutional Republic our Founders and Framers established.  We can face the insanity of much of the Political Correctness with Reason, Respect for Individual Rights, and exercise Understanding and Common Sense.  We can recover from our drift our moral moorings as a nation.  We can see America become the beacon of Hope, Freedom, Liberty, and Self-Government the world so desperately needs. We can become “a” if not” the” leader of the Free World not to impose our views on the world but to lead them to their own place in a Free Society.  We can see the Family strengthened and that alone will resolve much of the tension now existing on many fronts.  We cannot legislate morality, but we can, as a people recognize our drift, acknowledge our failures, and move toward the goal of our Founders and Framers – Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.

            God bless you and God bless America!