One more politician bites the dirt.
I have always thought about what it would be like to be wealthy. Unless I win the lottery somewhere, of which I never play, the opportunity for me to become wealthy is absolutely remote. I have a better chance of being elected President of the United States them to become wealthy.
I once thought being a bank robber would be the pathway to riches and fame. After some thought, I decided I would not make a very good bank robber. I hate wearing masks. Years ago, I had the opportunity to choose between intelligence and good looks and as anybody can see who has looked at me, I chose the latter. If I were a bank robber, I would have to hide my most valuable asset. What kind of nonsense would that be?
Another avenue to riches and fame, at least in my thinking, was to become one of those preachers on TV. Those old boys on TV must be wealthy; after all, all they talk about is money, money, money. Listening to some of them, you would think you were listening to a religious Donald Trump.
A television preacher rakes in quite a bit of money but then I thought about what's involved and I have ruled myself out. I cannot week after week talk about nothing but money, money, money. From my perspective, there is more to life than money. When you listen to most of these TV preachers all they can talk about is money. Specifically, sending them my money.
I would feel terrible getting on television and begging people to send me money and then promising God will bless them. I have been a Christian, after all, for over 50 years and I know that is not what the Bible says. To be a successful television preacher I would have to stretch the truth and at my age, I am not up for that kind of exercise.
My thoughts then turned to politics. If only I could be elected as a senator, governor or even president of the United States, I would be on my way to riches and fame. I hear these politicians on TV and all they do is talk, talk, talk. They talk so much my ears are thumping and they never get around to saying anything. I do not know any group of people who can talk so much for so long and say so little. I see that they spent money as if it is not theirs. Wait a minute! It is not theirs. In fact, a slice of that is my money.
I do not want to be a bank robber, nor do I want to be a TV preacher robbing people of money, and especially I do not want to be a politician who spends everybody's money but theirs.
I was deeply thinking about this the other night and concluded none of these areas are worth my pursuing. It looks as though I will end my days as poor as I started them.
While watching TV there was some politician talking about if he was elected he would create so many jobs for people. I nodded, almost asleep, when the Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage startled me with a comment. Occasionally she does something like this and usually, I am never prepared for it. Such was the case here.
"You know," she said rather gravely, "you should run for some political office. You'd make a good politician."
Well, this puts a different light on things. Maybe my better half has come up with a better idea. For all the years I have known her, she has never been wrong, much to my chagrin at times. Maybe she is seeing something in me I have overlooked all these years. She actually said, "You'd make a good politician."
Well the smile on my face hit the walls on both sides of the room we were sitting in.
It was then that I did something to ruin the whole aura of the evening. I said something. I have been a husband long enough to realize that when a husband opens his mouth nothing good will ever come out of it.
"So," I said rather arrogantly, "you think I would make a good politician."
So far, so good. If I only had stopped here, it would not have been so bad. But no, I had to push the envelope further.
"Why do you think I would make a good politician?"
There is one thing you need to understand about my wife. She will always tell the truth no matter whom it hurts, even if it is me.
"All these politicians are promising they are going to create jobs. Not one of them makes good on their promise. But you," and she paused here a little too dramatically for my liking, "have them all beat on this issue. Nobody creates more jobs around this house than you do. If you could take that skill to Washington DC you could put the entire country to work."
Jesus said a lot about work. In one place He said, "I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work" (John 9:4 KJV).
Some people work for riches. Some people work for recognition and honor. Jesus worked for his Father in heaven. An example we should follow.
