Notes to Self...and whoever's listening

  Let's start with some truths about me: 1. I'm an American. 2. I'm a Christian. 3. Politics upset me. I choose Republican to vote as it more closely mirrors what I believe - usually. 4. I voted for Trump. Both times. 5. I won't apologize for my beliefs. Sadly, those 5 truths have gotten me into a decent amount of arguments this past year, one just last night. One thing that hit me this morning as I was replaying last night's argument in my head is that I was frustrated with the other person because they only ever see their point and refuse to contemplate mine. Gently, the Lord asked if I do the same. Of course, I argued and said no at first. :) Then I stopped to replay the argument again...with that truth in mind.  Yeah, I wanted that person to see my way. I want that person to believe as I do. And I argued like I could possibly change their mind. It hit me that two things I really should avoid arguing about are God and politics. They are two things I'm passion...

If you know me even a little, you know church is a favorite place of mine. I grew up in a church. Literally. For three years in NYC, my dad pastored a Spanish-speaking church and we lived on the main floor of the church.  My father is a retired minister and chaplain. My grandfather was a minister. Even have a few grandmothers who were ministers. I, too, was a chaplain for about 8 years. One might say church is in my blood. Over the years, I've heard a lot of unkind things said about pastor's children. I even had one well-meaning youth leader pull me aside in junior high to remind me that I'm no better than anyone else and needed to remember that. Trust me, I do remember to this day. I do know that some pastor's kids were given free reign and were allowed to do what they wanted and receive little to no reprimands. That didn't fly with my parents. It probably helped me that I didn't have much of a rebellious bone in my body growing up. I left that to my siblings. ...